We present both the observations and the data reduction procedures of the Subaru COSMOS 20 project, an optical imaging survey of the HST COSMOS field, carried out by using Suprime-Cam on the Subaru Telescope with the following 20 optical filters: six broad-band (B, g', V, r', i', and z'), two narrow-band (NB711 and NB816), and 12 intermediate-band filters (IA427, IA464, IA484, IA505, IA527, IA574, IA624, IA679, IA709, IA738, IA767, and IA827). Part of this project is described in Taniguchi et al. (2007, ApJS, 172, 9) and Capak et al. (2007, ApJS, 172, 99) for the six broad-band and one narrow-band (NB816) filter data. In this paper, we present details of the observations and data reduction for the remaining 13 filters (the 12 IA filters and NB711). In particular, we describe the accuracy of both the photometry and astrometry in all the filter bands. We also present the optical properties of the Suprime-Cam IA filter system in appendices.

Background A target AUC0-24/MIC ratio of 400 has been associated with its clinical success when treating Staphylococcus aureus infections but is not currently supported by state-of-the-art evidence-based research. Objective This current systematic review aimed to evaluate the available evidence for the association between the AUC0-24/MIC ratio of vancomycin and its clinical effectiveness on hospitalized patients and to confirm the existing target value of 400. Methods PubMed, Embase, Web of Sciences, the Cochrane Library and two Chinese literature databases (CNKI, CBM) were systematically searched. Manual searching was also applied. Both RCTs and observational studies comparing the clinical outcomes of high AUC0-24/MIC groups versus low AUC0-24/MIC groups were eligible. Two reviewers independently extracted the data. The primary outcomes were mortality and infection treatment failure. Risk ratios (RRs) with 95% confidence intervals (95%CIs) were calculated. Results No RCTs were retrieved. Nine cohort studies were included in the meta-analysis. Mortality rates were significantly lower in high AUC0-24/MIC groups (RR = 0.47, 95%CI = 0.31–0.70, p<0.001). The rates of infection treatment failure were also significantly lower in high AUC/MIC groups and were consistent after correcting for heterogeneity (RR = 0.39, 95%CI = 0.28–0.55, p = 0.001). Subgroup analyses showed that results were consistent whether MIC values were determined by broth microdilution (BMD) method or Etest method. In studies using the BMD method, breakpoints of AUC0-24/MIC all fell within 85% to 115% of 400. Conclusions This meta-analysis demonstrated that achieving a high AUC0-24/MIC of vancomycin could significantly decrease mortality rates by 53% and rates of infection treatment failure by 61%, with 400 being a reasonable target. PMID:26731739

Preface; About the authors; 1. A grand tour of the heavens; 2. Light, matter and energy: powering the Universe; 3. Light and telescopes: extending our senses; 4. Observing the stars and planets: clockwork of the Universe; 5. Gravitation and motion: the early history of astronomy; 6. The terrestrial planets: Earth, Moon, and their relatives; 7. The Jovian planets: windswept giants; 8. Pluto, comets, and space debris; 9. Our Solar System and others; 10. Our star: the Sun; 11. Stars: distant suns; 12. How the stars shine: cosmic furnaces; 13. The death of stars: recycling; 14. Black holes: the end of space and time; 15. The Milky Way: our home in the Universe; 16. A Universe of galaxies; 17. Quasars and active galaxies; 18. Cosmology: the birth and life of the cosmos; 19. In the beginning; 20. Life in the Universe; Epilogue; Appendices; Selected readings; Glossary; Index.

The 6 weeks preflight activities of the Cosmos project during 1993 included: modification of EMG connector to improve the reliability of EMG recording; 24 hour cage activity recording from all but two of the flight animals (monkeys); attempts to record from flight candidates during foot lever task; and force transducer calibrations on all flight candidate animals. The 4 week postflight recordings included: postflight recordings from flight animals; postflight recordings on 3 control (non-flight) animals; postflight recalibration of force transducers on 1 flight and 4 control (non-flight) animals; and attempts to record EMG and video data from the flight animals during postflight locomotion and postural activity. The flight EMG recordings suggest that significant changes in muscle control may occur in spaceflight. It is also clear from recordings that levels of EMG recorded during spaceflight can attain values similar to those measured on earth. Amplifier gain settings should therefore probably not be changed for spaceflight.

Imagine a single website that acts as a portal to the entire wealth of public imagery spanning the world's observatories. This is the goal of the AstroPix project (astropix.ipac.caltech.edu), and you can use it today! Although still in a beta development state, this past year has seen the inclusion of thousands of images spanning some of the most prominent observatories in the world, including Chandra, ESO, Galex, Herschel, Hubble, Spitzer, and WISE, with more on the way. The archive is unique as it is built around the Astronomical Visualization Metadata (AVM) standard, which captures the rich contextual information for each image. This ranges from titles and descriptions, to color representations and observation details, to sky coordinates. AVM enables AstroPix imagery to be used in a variety of unique ways that benefit formal and informal education as well as astronomers and the general public. Visitors to Astropix can search the database using simple free-text queries, or use a structured search (similar to "Smart Playlists" found in iTunes, for example). We are also developing public application programming interfaces (APIs) to allow third party software and websites to access the growing content for a variety of uses (planetarium software, museum kiosks, mobile apps, and creative web interfaces, to name a few). Contributing image assets to AstroPix is as easy as tagging the images with the relevant metadata and including the web links to the images in a simple RSS feed. We will cover some of the latest information about tools to contribute images to AstroPix and ways to use the site.

COSMOS-3M is a two stage launcher with liquid propellant rocket engines. Since 1960's COSMOS has launched satellites of up to 1.500kg in both circular low Earth and elliptical orbits with high inclination. The direct SSO ascent is available from Plesetsk launch site. The very high number of 759 launches and the achieved success rate of 97,4% makes this space transportation system one of the most reliable and successful launchers in the world. The German small satellite company OHB System co-operates since 1994 with the COSMOS manufacturer POLYOT, Omsk, in Russia. They have created the joint venture COSMOS International and successfully launched five German and Italian satellites in 1999 and 2000. The next commercial launches are contracted for 2002 and 2003. In 2005 -2007 COSMOS will be also used for the new German reconnaissance satellite launches. This paper provides an overview of COSMOS-3M launcher: its heritage and performance, examples of scientific and commercial primary and piggyback payload launches, the launch service organization and international cooperation. The COSMOS launch service business strategy main points are depicted. The current and future position of COSMOS in the worldwide market of launch services is outlined.

Introduces the basics of radio astronomy and describes how to assemble several simple systems for receiving radio signals from the cosmos. Includes schematics, parts lists, working drawings, and contact information for radio astronomy suppliers. (11 references) (Author/JJK)

The Spitzer-COSMOS survey (S-COSMOS) is a Legacy program (Cycles 2+3) that was designed to carry out a uniform deep survey of the full 2-deg2 COSMOS field in all seven IRAC + MIPS bands. We present the final IRAC-1234 and MIPS24,70,160 catalogs and images, and compare our differential source counts for the COSMOS field with other deep fields observed by Spitzer. New results from a study of a complete 70micron-selected sample of 1200 sources are also presented, including the variation in spectral energy distributions, optical morphology, and spectral type of the host galaxies of these luminous infrared galaxies (LIRGs). Our S-COSMOS results are compared with similar studies of the population of LIRGs in the local universe.

Space, as Douglas Adams once wrote, is big. Really big. But just how big is it? And what else, aside from our own planet Earth, is out there in it? Cosmos: the Infographic Book of Space answers these questions in a stunning fashion, but to describe it as a beautiful book full of interesting facts does not do it justice.

We present the first results obtained from the identification of {approx}30,000 sources in the Spitzer/24 {mu}m observations of the COSMOS field at S{sub 24{mu}m} {approx}> 80 {mu}Jy. Using accurate photometric redshifts ({sigma} {sub z} {approx} 0.12 at z {approx} 2 for 24 {mu}m sources with i {sup +} {approx}< 25 mag AB) and simple extrapolations of the number counts at faint fluxes, we resolve with unprecedented detail the buildup of the mid-infrared background across cosmic ages. We find that {approx}50% and {approx}80% of the 24 {mu}m background intensity originate from galaxies at z {approx}< 1 and z {approx}< 2, respectively, supporting the scenario where highly obscured sources at very high redshifts (z {approx}> 2) contribute only marginally to the cosmic infrared background. Assuming flux-limited selections at optical wavelengths, we also find that the fraction of i {sup +}-band sources with 24 {mu}m detection strongly increases up to z {approx} 2 as a consequence of the rapid evolution that star-forming galaxies have undergone with look-back time. Nonetheless, this rising trend shows a clear break at z {approx} 1.3, probably due to k-correction effects implied by the complexity of spectral energy distributions in the mid-infrared. Finally, we compare our results with the predictions from different models of galaxy formation. We note that semianalytical formalisms currently fail to reproduce the redshift distributions observed at 24 {mu}m. Furthermore, the simulated galaxies at S {sub 24{mu}m} > 80 {mu}Jy exhibit R-K colors much bluer than observed and the predicted K-band fluxes are systematically underestimated at z {approx}> 0.5. Unless these discrepancies mainly result from an incorrect treatment of extinction in the models they may reflect an underestimate of the predicted density of high-redshift massive sources with strong ongoing star formation, which would point to more fundamental processes and/or parameters (e.g., initial mass function

Galactic forces spiral across the cosmos fueled by nuclear fission and fusion and atoms in plasmatic states with throes of constraints of gravitational forces and magnetic fields, In their wanderings these galaxies spew light, radiation, atomic and subatomic particles throughout the universe. Throughout the ages of man visions of journeying through the stars have been wondered. If humans and human devices from Earth are to go beyond the Moon and journey into deep space, it must be accomplished with like forces of the cosmos such as electrical fields, magnetic fields, ions, electrons and energies generated from the manipulation of subatomic and atomic particles. Forms of electromagnetic waves such as light, radio waves and lasers must control deep space engines. We won't get far on our Earth accustomed hydrocarbon fuels.

The effects of flight on Cosmos mission 2044 on leukocyte subset distribution and the sensitivity of bone marrow cells to colony stimulating factor-GM were determined. A parallel study with antiorthostatic suspension was also carried out. The study involved repetition and expansion of studies performed on Cosmos 1887. Spleen and bone marrow cells were obtained from flown, vivarium control, synchronous control, and suspended rats. The cells were stained with a series of monoclonal antibodies directed against rat leukocyte cell surface antigens. Control cells were stained with a monoclonal antibody directed against an irrelevant species or were unstained. Cells were then analyzed for fluorescence using a FACSCAN flow cytometer. Bone marrow cells were placed in culture with GM-CSF in McCoy's 5a medium and incubated for 5 days. Cultures were then evaluated for the number of colonies of 50 cells or greater.

Some examples of multispectral image processing for the high-resolution optical-electronic scanning radiometer (MSU-E) of the Soviet Cosmos 1939 satellite are given for the FIFE 1989 data. Data processing algorithms are outlined, including satellite radiometer calibration, atmospheric correction of space images, and phytomass content retrieval using ground-based biophysical measurements for test sites. Spatial distribution of the phytomass content retrieved from the MSU-E image for August 9, 1989, using the normalized difference vegetation index is shown. Results of image processing for April 14, 1989, displaying the discrimination between burnt and unburnt classes of vegetation are also shown. 12 refs.

Foreword Alex Filippenko; 1. The awakening of astronomy; 2. How the Sun will die; 3. The end of life on Earth; 4. How the moon formed; 5. Where has all the water gone?; 6. Why did Venus turn inside-out?; 7. Is Pluto a planet?; 8. Planets everywhere; 9. The Milky Way as barred spiral; 10. Here comes Milkomeda; 11. The Big Bang's cosmic echo; 12. How large is the universe?; 13. The mystery of dark matter; 14. The bigger mystery of dark energy; 15. Black holes are ubiquitous; 16. What is the universe's fate?; 17. The meaning of life in the cosmos; Glossary; Bibliography; Index.

The equatorial 2 deg2 COSMOS area is the only large field for which a complete, deep, pan-chromatic data set exists, from an outstanding survey effort, and that all large telescopes can observe. During 2013, this pioneering and ambitious COSMOS survey had a major extension, pushing its frontiers via the newly approved Chandra COSMOS Legacy Survey, the second largest Chandra proposal ever approved, plus new deep Spitzer, JVLA and NuSTAR surveys all aimed to study the formation of the structures in the high redshift Universe and the role of active super massive black holes. The Chandra COSMOS-Legacy survey uniformly covers the 1.7 deg2 COSMOS/HST field with 2.8 Ms of Chandra ACIS-I imaging at ~160 ksec depth. This project expands the deep C-COSMOS area by a factor of ~3 at ~3e-16 (1.45 vs 0.44 deg2). The survey consists of 56x50 ks tiles covering a total area of 2.2 deg2 yelding a sample of ~4000 X-ray sources. In this poster we present the first results on the survey and we concentrate on the high redshift z>3 sample.

The COSMOS 2044 spaceflight was the ninth Soviet-International joint mission dedicated to space biomedicine and the seventh in which the United States has participated. The unmanned Vostok vehicle carried 10 rats and two rhesus monkeys on its 14-day voyage. This spaceflight yielded an unprecedented bounty of data on physiological responses to the microgravity environment. The tissues studied and the numbers and types of studies performed by members of the international science community constituted a new record. Many of the results obtained by the approximately 80 American scientists who participated are reported in the series of COSMOS 2044 papers in this issue. Descriptions of the spaceflight and animal procedures are detailed elsewhere. The broad goals of the space biomedical program are threefold. The first is to characterize qualitatively and quantitatively the biological responses to the microgravity environment, be they adaptive or pathological. The second goal is to clarify the physiological-biochemical mechanisms mediating the responses to microgravity. The third goal of this program is to use the space environment as a tool to better understand adaptive and disease processes in terrestrial organisms.

Evidence from both human and rodent studies has indicated that alterations in immunological parameters occur after space flight. The number of flight experiments has been small, and the full breadth of immunological alterations occurring after space flight remains to be established. Among the major effects on immune responses after space flight that have been reported are: alterations in lymphocyte blastogenesis and natural killer cell activity, alterations in production of cytokines, changes in leukocyte sub-population distribution, and decreases in the ability in the ability of bone marrow cells to respond to colony stimulating factors. Changes have been reported in immunological parameters of both humans and rodents. The significance of these alterations in relation to resistance to infection remains to be established. The current study involved a determination of the effects of flight on Cosmos mission 2044 on leukocyte subset distribution and the sensitivity of bone marrow cells to colony stimulating factor-GM. A parallel study with antiorthostatic suspension was also carried out. The study involved repetition and expansion of studies carried out on Cosmos 1887.

Twenty two groups of U.S. investigators participated in joint studies of ten male rats flown on the Cosmos 1887 biosatellite. A summary of these studies embracing skeletal muscle, bone, endocrine, neural, intestinal, metabolic, immunology, cardiac, and gonadal investigations is presented. Three general objectives of the rat experiments are outlined - verification of previous observations of the biological responses to microgravity; clarification of the effects of microgravity on both the tissues investigated and the measurements performed; and relation of biological responses to flight duration. It is concluded that the first objective is met fully and the second with a varying degree of success. The confounding effects of overshooting the designated landing site and delayed recovery of the animals largely precluded meeting the last objective. It is also noted that investigations were performed for the first time on brain and spinal cord enzymes, a neurotransmitter, transmitter receptors, hypothalamic regulatory factors, pineal metabolites, atrial granules, liver histology, and jejunal mitotic rate in spaceflight animals.

We present a new near-infrared survey covering the 2 deg2 COSMOS field conducted using WIRCam at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope. By combining our near-infrared data with Subaru B and z images, we construct a deep, wide-field optical-infrared catalog. At K s < 23 (AB magnitudes), our survey completeness is greater than 90% and 70% for stars and galaxies, respectively, and contains 143,466 galaxies and 13,254 stars. Using the BzK diagram, we divide our galaxy catalog into quiescent and star-forming galaxy candidates. At z ~ 2, our catalogs contain 3931 quiescent and 25,757 star-forming galaxies representing the largest and most secure sample at these depths and redshifts to date. Our counts of quiescent galaxies turns over at K s ~ 22, an effect that we demonstrate cannot be due to sample incompleteness. Both the number of faint and bright quiescent objects in our catalogs exceed the predictions of a recent semi-analytic model of galaxy formation, indicating potentially the need for further refinements in the amount of merging and active galactic nucleus feedback at z ~ 2 in these models. We measure the angular correlation function for each sample and find that the slope of the field galaxy correlation function flattens to 1.5 by K s ~ 23. At small angular scales, the angular correlation function for passive BzK galaxies is considerably in excess of the clustering of dark matter. We use precise 30-band photometric redshifts to derive the spatial correlation length and the redshift distributions for each object class. At K s < 22, we find r γ/1.8 0 = 7.0 ± 0.5h -1 Mpc for the passive BzK candidates and 4.7 ± 0.8 h -1 Mpc for the star-forming BzK galaxies. Our pBzK galaxies have an average photometric redshift of zp ~ 1.4, in approximate agreement with the limited spectroscopic information currently available. The stacked K s image will be made publicly available from IRSA. Based on data collected at the Subaru Telescope, which is operated by the National

In 2007 the non-profit Digital Universe Foundation (DUF) launched the Earth Portal as a comprehensive resource for timely, objective, science-based information about the environment. There are currently over 1000 scholars from 60 countries engaged in this rapidly growing web-based collaboration. The Cosmos Portal is the second major DUF initiative (digitaluniverse.net/cosmos). In support of the IYA2009 effort, the Cosmos Portal is recruiting astronomy professionals to make use of easy online tools to publish articles, blogs, news items, image galleries, class notes, lectures, powerpoint presentations, links to other high quality websites or other educational material. In parallel we intend to bring hundreds of amateur astronomy organizations and thousands of amateur astronomers and telescope makers together in a community of portals (digitaluniverse.net/cosmoscommunity). This will allow vibrant online collaboration and information sharing. We encourage you to start a portal on your favorite topic or join an existing topic as a contributor.

The concept of Cosmos, a Soviet operating center for aerospace activities, is presented. The main Cosmos participants are the Institute for Aerospace Education, the Institute for Research and Commercial Development, and the Department of Space Policy and Socio-Economic Studies. Cosmos sponsors a number of educational programs, basic research, and studies of the social impact of space-related technologies.

The COSMOS-Legacy survey is a 4.6 Ms Chandra program that has imaged 2.2 deg2 of the COSMOS field with an effective exposure of ≃ 160 ks over the central 1.5 deg2 and of ≃ 80 ks in the remaining area. The survey is the combination of 56 new observations obtained as an X-ray Visionary Project with the previous C-COSMOS survey. We describe the reduction and analysis of the new observations and the properties of 2273 point sources detected above a spurious probability of 2 × 10-5. We also present the updated properties of the C-COSMOS sources detected in the new data. The whole survey includes 4016 point sources (3814, 2920 and 2440 in the full, soft, and hard band). The limiting depths are 2.2 × 10-16, 1.5 × 10-15, and 8.9 × 10-16 {\\text{erg cm}}-2 {{{s}}}-1 in the 0.5-2, 2-10, and 0.5-10 keV bands, respectively. The observed fraction of obscured active galactic nuclei with a column density >1022 cm-2 from the hardness ratio (HR) is ˜50{}-16+17%. Given the large sample we compute source number counts in the hard and soft bands, significantly reducing the uncertainties of 5%-10%. For the first time we compute number counts for obscured (HR > -0.2) and unobscured (HR < -0.2) sources and find significant differences between the two populations in the soft band. Due to the unprecedent large exposure, COSMOS-Legacy area is three times larger than surveys at similar depths and its depth is three times fainter than surveys covering similar areas. The area-flux region occupied by COSMOS-Legacy is likely to remain unsurpassed for years to come.

The equatorial 2 deg2 COSMOS area is the only large field for which a complete, deep, pan-chromatic data set exists, from an outstanding survey effort, and that all large telescopes can observe. Now, this pioneering and ambitious COSMOS survey is undergoing major extension, pushing its frontiers via the newly approved Chandra COSMOS Legacy Survey, the second largest Chandra proposal ever approved.'COSMOS-Legacy' will uniformly cover the 1.7 deg2 COSMOS/HST field with 2.8 Ms of Chandra ACIS-I imaging at ~160 ksec depth. This project expands the current deep C-COSMOS area by a factor of ~3 at ~3e-16 (1.45 vs 0.44 deg2). This will be achieved with 56x50 ks tiles covering a total area of 2.2 deg2, which will be observed during Chandra Cycle 14. The area and depth of COSMOS Legacy are designed to detect ~40 z>4, and ~4 z>5 Large Scale Structures on >15 arcmin scales. These structures have proven to connect luminous AGN (over 200 at z>3 will be detected) and sub-mm galaxies. COSMOS Legacy will also probe mini-quasars at z>7, using anistotropies of the unresolved X-ray Background, and the masses of the Dark Matter halos hosting X-ray AGN up to 3, via autocorrelation functions on ~30arcmin scales. To fully achieve these goals, COSMOS Legacy is complemented by spectroscopic follow-up with DEIMOS and MOSFIRE at Keck and KMOS at the VLT and FMOS at Subaru, just approved observations with Spitzer and JVLA, and with harder (5-80 keV) X-ray imaging with NuSTAR. In the near future, observations with Subaru HyperSuprimeCam (grizY) to r(AB)=28.2 are planned.

We obtained medium-resolution spectra of 336 quasar candidates in the COSMOS HST Treasury field using the MMT 6.5 m telescope and the Hectospec multiobject spectrograph. Candidates were drawn from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) DR1 catalog using quasar flags set by the SDSS multicolor quasar target selection algorithm. In this paper we present our discovery spectra from 1.39 deg2 (69.5% of the COSMOS field) and a discussion of the selection method and yields. We confirmed 95 quasars, including at least two BAL quasars; 80 of these are new quasars that do not appear in previous quasar confirmation follow-up studies. The candidates additionally included 184 compact emission-line galaxies, a third of which are likely type 2 AGNs, and 12 stars. The quasars span a range in magnitude of 18.3COSMOS field. This work is the first step toward the eventual goal of setting up a grid of quasar absorption line probes of the 2 deg2 field and of conducting a complete census of supermassive black holes in this well-studied survey region. The total quasar count at the conclusion of this study is 139, making COSMOS one of the most densely sampled regions of sky where a grid of quasar sight lines can be used to probe the intervening volume.

We used the Plateau de Bure Interferometer (PdBI) to map a sample of 15 submillimetre galaxies (SMGs) in the COSMOS field at the wavelength of 1.3 mm. The target SMGs were originally discovered in the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT)/AzTEC 1.1 mm continuum survey at S/N1.1 mm = 4-4.5. This paper presents, for the first time, interferometric millimetre-wavelength observations of these sources. The angular resolution of our observations, 1''&dotbelow;8, allowed us to accurately determine the positions of the target SMGs. Using a detection threshold of S/N1.3 mm> 4.5 regardless of multiwavelength counterpart association, and 4

Light- and electron-microscopic studies were performed on cardiac muscle from rats flown on Cosmos 2044 and from four control groups. Average cross-sectional area of myofibers was measured by video analysis of the light-microscopic images of papillary and ventricular muscle samples from all animals. This cross-sectional area was significantly decreased in flight rats (P = 0.03) compared with synchronous controls. Additional findings at the electron microscopic level consistent with this atrophy were obtained by stereological analysis and optical diffraction analysis of papillary muscle samples. Slightly higher mitochondrial volume density values and mitochondria-to-myofibril ratios as well as normal A-band spacings (d1,0) and Z-band spacings of myofibrils were observed in the tail-suspension and flight groups. General morphological features similar to those in ventricular samples from the previous Cosmos 1887 flight were observed.

Our cosmic tour begins here. As we leave the secure confines of the Earth and journey into space, we find a plethora of strange and unexpected phenomena. Little can we anticipate from the quiet, star-studded sky the violent events in the cosmos. Stars explode. Powerful radio sources eject matter in jets. The ever-changing Universe grows more beautiful and more complex the deeper into it we go. Professor Narlikar skillfully steers us through a cosmic journey of discovery, starting from the Earth and Solar System and stepping out to the farthest reaches of the Universe. Using simple analogies, humorous anecdotes, and a wealth of illustrations, he conveys the thrill of observing strange and surprising features of the Universe. The seven wonders represent a range of mysterious phenomena, a class of spectacular events, or remarkable cosmic objects that have challenged human curiosity and defied explanation. They concern the giants and dwarfs of the stellar world, the catastrophic explosion of massive stars, pulsars--the ultimate timekeepers of the cosmos, the strange effects of gravity, illusions of space, and the majestic expansion of the Universe as a whole. With lucid prose, the author weaves together a host of exciting recent discoveries in astronomy and shows us how these motivate astronomers to unravel the wonders of tomorrow.

Context: Morphology is the most accessible tracer of galaxies physical structure, but its interpretation in the framework of galaxy evolution still remains problematic. Its quantification at high redshift requires deep high-angular resolution imaging, which is why space data (HST) are usually employed. At z > 1, the HST visible cameras however probe the UV flux, which is dominated by the emission of young stars, which could bias the estimated morphologies towards late-type systems. Aims: In this paper we quantify the effects of this morphological k-correction at 1 < z < 2 by comparing morphologies measured in the K and I-bands in the COSMOS area. The Ks-band data indeed have the advantage of probing old stellar populations in the rest frame for z < 2, enabling determination of galaxy morphological types unaffected by recent star formation. Methods: In Paper I we presented a new non-parametric method of quantifying morphologies of galaxies on seeing-limited images based on support vector machines. Here we use this method to classify ~50 000 Ks selected galaxies in the COSMOS area observed with WIRCam at CFHT. We use a 10-dimensional volume, including 5 morphological parameters, and other characteristics of galaxies such as luminosity and redshift. The obtained classification is used to investigate the redshift distributions and number counts per morphological type up to z ~ 2 and to compare them to the results obtained with HST/ACS in the I-band on the same objects. We associate to every galaxy with Ks < 21.5 and z < 2 a probability between 0 and 1 of being late-type or early-type. We use this value to assess the accuracy of our classification as a function of physical parameters of the galaxy and to correct for classification errors. Results: The classification is found to be reliable up to z ~ 2. The mean probability is p ~ 0.8. It decreases with redshift and with size, especially for the early-type population, but remains above p ~ 0.7. The classification

Artist Karel Nel works with astronomers from COSMOS, the global Cosmic Evolution Survey that is mapping galaxies and dark matter. Now exhibiting his work in London, he tells Nature how his view of the Universe has changed.

The Cosmic Evolution Survey (COSMOS) covers two square degrees, and is observed over a large portion of the electromagnetic spectrum from X-ray to Radio. Key science goals of COSMOS include probing the evolution of galaxies, AGN, and large scale structures of the Universe. As well as constraining cosmological models and the star and structure formation history of the Universe. The wide range of frequencies and deep surveys are suitable for many astrophysical studies.Beginning in 2013, observations of the COSMOS field in C-band (4 - 8 GHz) using the JVLA have been carried out in every configuration spanning 21 months (April 2013 - Jan 2015) for a total of 13 observations. The observations are comprised of 1 hour time blocks using a technique called On-The-Fly Mosaicking (OTFM). Using OTFM we see an increased efficiency for an allotted observation block by collecting data as the array scans across the field, rather than a pointed mosaic which requires settle down time after each new pointing. Each observation consists of 2160 1-second integrations on 432 phase centers that require calibration and image processing before they can be mosaicked to create the final image of the entire COSMOS field.The primary science goal of this survey is to identify, catalog, and study the variable and transient radio sources in the COSMOS field, comparing these to other radio, optical, IR, and X-ray observations. The main class of variables we are interested in Active Galactic Nuclei.

The COSMOS field is the only large (2 sq. deg.) field for which complete, deep, panchromatic data exist and which all large telescopes can observe due to its equatorial location. In 2013, the COSMOS survey was greatly extended, thanks to the Chandra COSMOS Legacy Survey, the second largest extragalactic Chandra project ever approved. This survey is aimed at studying the formation of the structures in the high redshift Universe and understanding the role active super massive black holes played in their evolution. With 56 overlapping ACIS-I pointings of 50-ksec depth each, the Chandra COSMOS-Legacy survey uniformly covers the 1.7 sq. deg. COSMOS/HST field to ~160 ksec depth, with a total of 2.8 Ms exposure time. This triples the area of the earlier deep C-COSMOS survey (limiting flux ~3e-16 ergs/cm2/s in the 0.5-2 keV band), and together these two projects cover a total area of 2.2 sq. deg., yielding a sample of ~4200 X-ray sources. We present the survey properties, the procedure adopted to obtain our final catalog and the first scientific highlights, focusing on the high redshift (z>3) sample.

Water appears to be essential to all life on Earth. For this reason, "Follow the Water" has been adopted as a mantra for the search for Life in the Cosmos. Expeditions have helped to establish the limits and biodiversity of life in the most extreme environments on Earth. Microbial extremophiles inhabit acidic streams; hypersaline and hyperalkaline lakes and pools; the cold deep sea floor, permafrost, rocks, glaciers, and perennially ice-covered lakes of the polar environments; geysers, volcanic fumaroles, hydrothermal vents and hot rocks deep within the Earth's crust. The ESA Venus Express Spacecraft entered Venusian Orbit in 2006 and continues to produce exciting results. The Visible and Infrared Thermal Imaging Spectrometer (VIRTIS) instrument made the first detection of hydroxyl in the atmosphere of Venus, indicating it is much more similar to Earth and Mars than previously thought. Huge hurricane-like vortices have been found above the poles of the planet and as yet unidentified UV absorbers that form mysterious dark bands in the upper atmosphere. At 70 km and below, water vapor and sulfur dioxide combine to form sulfuric acid droplets that create a haze above the cloud tops. Thermophilic acidophiles, such as have recently been discovered on Earth, could possibly survive in the hot sulfuric acid droplets that exist in the upper atmosphere of Venus. In order to understand how to search for life elsewhere in the Solar System, over 40 VIRTIS images of Earth from Venus have been obtained to search for evidence of life on Earth. The signatures of water and molecular Oxygen were detected in the Earth s atmosphere, but the atmosphere of Venus also exhibits these signatures. The water and water ice are far more abundant on comet, the polar caps and permafrost of Mars and the icy moons of Jupiter and Saturn. These "frozen worlds" of our Solar System, are much more promising regimes where extant or extinct microbial life may exist. The ESA Mars Advanced Radar for

The following tasks were proposed for the Cosmos project: 1) Complete recordings of all preflight candidates during performance of a foot pedal motor control task while in the space capsule mock-up. 2) Complete recordings of all preflight candidates during locomotion and postural tasks. 3) Complete recordings of 24-hour spontaneous cage activity in the two flight monkeys before and after flight and of at least three control (non-flight) monkeys after the flight has been completed. 4) Complete recordings of the foot pedal and motor control tasks during flight and postflight as scheduled. 5) Complete recordings of the vertical drop test pre, during and postflight for the two flight and three control monkeys. 6) Complete recordings of locomotion and posture tests of the two flight monkeys postflight. 7) Complete recordings of locomotion and postural tests of at least three control (non-flight) monkeys during the postflight period. 8) Recalibrate buckles of the two flight and of at least three control monkeys postflight. 9) Complete analysis of the 24 hour EMG recordings of all monkeys. 10) Complete analysis of the foot pedal, locomotor and postural motor control tasks for the two flight and three control monkeys. It was proposed that efforts in the first postflight year be concentrated on the two flight animals and three postflight animals.

The 2 sq.deg. COSMOS area is the only large field for which a complete, deep, pan-chromatic data set exists, thanks to an outstanding survey effort over nearly a decade. Now, the COSMOS survey is undergoing major extensions, via the newly approved Chandra COSMOS Legacy Survey ('COSMOS-Legacy') and other programs. COSMOS-Legacy is the second largest Chandra proposal ever approved. COSMOS-Legacy will uniformly cover the 1.7 sq.deg. COSMOS/HST field with 2.8 Ms of Chandra ACIS-I imaging at ~160 ksec depth, expanding the deep C-COSMOS area by a factor of ~3 at ~3e-16 erg/cm2/s (1.45 vs 0.44 deg2). A total area of 2.2 deg2 will be covered. The first ten 50ks tiles (as of Jan 2013), out of 56 tiles, have been observed. At least other twenty are scheduled by the end of March 2013. At the same time NuSTAR is observing COSMOS for 3 Msec in the harder (5-80 keV) band to 5e-14 cgs (10-30 keV) complementing the Chandra observations. The area and depth of COSMOS Legacy are designed to detect ~40 z>4, and ~4 z>5 Large Scale Structures on >15 arcmin scales. These proto-structures have proven to connect luminous AGN and sub-mm galaxies in the early Universe. Over 200 z>3 X-ray AGN (below and above Lx=10^44) are expected, many of which should lie in these structures. To fully characterize the high-z X-ray sources in the structures, COSMOS Legacy is supported by spectroscopic follow-up observations (DEIMOS and MOSFIRE at Keck, KMOS at the VLT, FMOS at Subaru). New deep imaging surveys with Spitzer and JVLA are underway to define the properties of the galaxies in the structures up to 7. Extremely deep, r_{AB}=28.2, optical imaging in grizY are planned with the new HyperSuprimeCam on Subaru as well.

The Chandra COSMOS Survey (C-COSMOS) is a large, 1.8 Ms, Chandra program that has imaged the central 0.5 deg{sup 2} of the COSMOS field (centered at 10 {sup h}, +02 deg.) with an effective exposure of {approx}160 ks, and an outer 0.4 deg{sup 2} area with an effective exposure of {approx}80 ks. The limiting source detection depths are 1.9 x 10{sup -16} erg cm{sup -2} s{sup -1} in the soft (0.5-2 keV) band, 7.3 x 10{sup -16} erg cm{sup -2} s{sup -1} in the hard (2-10 keV) band, and 5.7 x 10{sup -16} erg cm{sup -2} s{sup -1} in the full (0.5-10 keV) band. Here we describe the strategy, design, and execution of the C-COSMOS survey, and present the catalog of 1761 point sources detected at a probability of being spurious of <2 x 10{sup -5} (1655 in the full, 1340 in the soft, and 1017 in the hard bands). By using a grid of 36 heavily ({approx}50%) overlapping pointing positions with the ACIS-I imager, a remarkably uniform ({+-}12%) exposure across the inner 0.5 deg{sup 2} field was obtained, leading to a sharply defined lower flux limit. The widely different point-spread functions obtained in each exposure at each point in the field required a novel source detection method, because of the overlapping tiling strategy, which is described in a companion paper. This method produced reliable sources down to a 7-12 counts, as verified by the resulting logN-logS curve, with subarcsecond positions, enabling optical and infrared identifications of virtually all sources, as reported in a second companion paper. The full catalog is described here in detail and is available online.

Presented is a summary report of the American experiments conducted on the Soviet Cosmos 782 satellite in November and December, l975. Each of the four passive and seven cooperating experiments developed by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) are reviewed. (SL)

Briefly described is the County of San Mateo Online System (COSMOS) which was developed and is used by the San Mateo Educational Resources Center (SMERC) to access the Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) and Fugitive Information Data Organizer (FIDO) databases as well as the curriculum guides housed at SMERC. (TG)

In 2007 the non-profit Digital Universe Foundation (DUF) launched the Earth Portal (earthportal.org) as a comprehensive resource for timely, objective, science-based information about the environment. There are currently over 1000 scholars from 60 countries engaged in this rapidly growing web-based collaboration. The Cosmos Portal is the second major DUF initiative (cosmosportal.org). In support of the IYA2009 effort, the Cosmos Portal is recruiting astronomy professionals to make use of easy online tools to publish articles, blogs, news items, image galleries, class notes, lectures, powerpoint presentations, links to other high quality websites or other educational material. A major difference between the Digital Universe and Wikipedia is that educational material is produced by identified experts, not anonymous contributors with unknown qualifications. The Digital Universe is a 501(c)(3) public charity whose goal is to evolve into a worldwide online community (a social network) whose centerpiece is an ever growing Asimov-Sagan Encyclopedia Galactica created by experts. We encourage you to write an encylopedia article or start a portal on your favorite topic or join an existing topic as an expert contributor.

The discovery of traces of life in the ancient Mars meteorite triggered the development of the rapidly emerging field of Astrobiology. Astrobiologists are seeking to develop conclusive methods to recognize biosignatures and microfossils of bacteria and other microbiota as well as to understand the spatial, temporal, environmental and chemical limitations of microbial extremophiles. Recent discoveries have revealed the great distribution and diversity of microbial extremophiles on Earth and profoundly increased the probability that life may exist elsewhere in the Cosmos. The rapidly emerging science of Bacterial Paleontology has provided important new information critical to the recognition of fossil bacteria on Earth and in Astromaterials. We have recently conducted independent scanning electron microscopy and x-ray analysis investigations in the US and Russia in order to better understand the morphology and chemical composition of microfossils in ancient terrestrial rocks and carbonaceous meteorites. In this paper, we review some aspects of microbial extremophiles of Earth as modals for life on other bodies of the Solar System. We consider several of the important chemical, mineral and morphological biomarkers that provide definitive evidence of biogenic activity in ancient rocks and meteorites. We present Environmental Scanning Electron Microscope images of microfossils found in-situ in freshly fractured meteorite surfaces and describe Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy and Link microprobe analysis of the chemical elements in the mineralized and/or kerogenous microfossils and meteorite rock matrix. We also discuss technqiues and methods that may be used to help discriminate indigenous microfosils from recent terrestrial contaminants. We will also present new data from our in-situ investigations of living cyanobacteria and bacteria and freshly broken surfaces of terrestrial rocks and meteorites. Comparative analysis of these images are interpreted as providing

We present Spitzer 70 and 160 {mu}m observations of the COSMOS Spitzer survey (S-COSMOS). The data processing techniques are discussed for the publicly released products consisting of images and source catalogs. We present accurate 70 and 160 {mu}m source counts of the COSMOS field and find reasonable agreement with measurements in other fields and with model predictions. The previously reported counts for GOODS-North and the extragalactic First Look Survey are updated with the latest calibration, and counts are measured based on the large area SWIRE survey to constrain the bright source counts. We measure an extragalactic confusion noise level of {sigma} {sub c} = 9.4 {+-} 3.3 mJy (q = 5) for the MIPS 160 {mu}m band based on the deep S-COSMOS data and report an updated confusion noise level of {sigma} {sub c} = 0.35 {+-} 0.15 mJy (q = 5) for the MIPS 70 {mu}m band.

The new book "Parallax: The Race to Measure the Cosmos" chronicles the centuries-long struggle to secure the first distance to a star through detection of stellar parallax. Beginning with the naked-eye attempts of Tycho Brahe and proceeding through the telescopic studies of Robert Hooke, James Bradley, and William Herschel, all three of whom employed observational strategies suggested by Galileo, the effort to measure stellar parallax gained momentum in the early 19th century with dramatic improvements in telescope technology by German craftsmen such as Joseph Fraunhofer. Three near-contemporaneous announcements of stellar parallaxes were made in the late 1830s by Thomas Henderson (Alpha Centauri), Wilhelm Struve (Vega), and Friedrich Bessel (61 Cygni). By consensus of the astronomical community, Bessel was credited with the first successful measurement of a star's distance. With its biographical focus, "Parallax: The Race to Measure the Cosmos" highlights the human dimensions of scientific achievement.

Male Wistar rats were placed in orbit for an 18.5 day period aboard the Soviet Cosmos 1129 biological satellite. The skeletal changes which occurred during spaceflight were determined to be a reduced rate of periosteal bone formation in the tibial and humeral diaphyses, and a decreased trabecular bone volume and an increased fat content of the bone marrow in the proximal tibial metaphysis.

In this manuscript we describe the experimental procedure employed at the Alfred Wegener Institute in Germany in the preparation of the simulations for the Pliocene Model Intercomparison Project (PlioMIP). We present a description of the utilized Community Earth System Models (COSMOS, version: COSMOS-landveg r2413, 2009) and document the procedures that we applied to transfer the Pliocene Research, Interpretation and Synoptic Mapping (PRISM) Project mid-Pliocene reconstruction into model forcing fields. The model setup and spin-up procedure are described for both the paleo- and preindustrial (PI) time slices of PlioMIP experiments 1 and 2, and general results that depict the performance of our model setup for mid-Pliocene conditions are presented. The mid-Pliocene, as simulated with our COSMOS setup and PRISM boundary conditions, is both warmer and wetter in the global mean than the PI. The globally averaged annual mean surface air temperature in the mid-Pliocene standalone atmosphere (fully coupled atmosphere-ocean) simulation is 17.35 °C (17.82 °C), which implies a warming of 2.23 °C (3.40 °C) relative to the respective PI control simulation.

We discuss the construction of the Galaxy And Mass Assembly (GAMA) 10h region (G10) using publicly available data in the Cosmic Evolution Survey region (COSMOS) in order to extend the GAMA survey to z ˜ 1 in a single deg2 field. In order to obtain the maximum number of high precision spectroscopic redshifts we re-reduce all archival zCOSMOS-bright data and use the GAMA automatic cross-correlation redshift fitting code AUTOZ. We use all available redshift information (AUTOZ, zCOSMOS-bright 10k, PRIMUS, VVDS, SDSS and photometric redshifts) to calculate robust best-fitting redshifts for all galaxies and visually inspect all 1D and 2D spectra to obtain 16 583 robust redshifts in the full COSMOS region. We then define the G10 region to be the central ˜1 deg2 of COSMOS, which has relatively high spectroscopic completeness, and encompasses the CHILES VLA region. We define a combined r < 23.0 mag and i < 22.0 mag G10 sample (selected to have the highest bijective overlap) with which to perform future analysis, containing 9861 sources with reliable high-precision VLT-VIMOS spectra. All tables, spectra and imaging are available at http://ict.icrar.org/cutout/G10.

We present the COSMOS201524 catalog, which contains precise photometric redshifts and stellar masses for more than half a million objects over the 2deg2 COSMOS field. Including new {{YJHK}}{{s}} images from the UltraVISTA-DR2 survey, Y-band images from Subaru/Hyper-Suprime-Cam, and infrared data from the Spitzer Large Area Survey with the Hyper-Suprime-Cam Spitzer legacy program, this near-infrared-selected catalog is highly optimized for the study of galaxy evolution and environments in the early universe. To maximize catalog completeness for bluer objects and at higher redshifts, objects have been detected on a χ 2 sum of the {{YJHK}}{{s}} and z ++ images. The catalog contains ∼ 6× {10}5 objects in the 1.5 deg2 UltraVISTA-DR2 region and ∼ 1.5× {10}5 objects are detected in the “ultra-deep stripes” (0.62 deg2) at {K}{{s}}≤slant 24.7 (3σ, 3″, AB magnitude). Through a comparison with the zCOSMOS-bright spectroscopic redshifts, we measure a photometric redshift precision of {σ }{{Δ }z/(1+{z}s)} = 0.007 and a catastrophic failure fraction of η = 0.5%. At 3\\lt z\\lt 6, using the unique database of spectroscopic redshifts in COSMOS, we find {σ }{{Δ }z/(1+{z}s)} = 0.021 and η = 13.2 % . The deepest regions reach a 90% completeness limit of {10}10{M}ȯ to z = 4. Detailed comparisons of the color distributions, number counts, and clustering show excellent agreement with the literature in the same mass ranges. COSMOS2015 represents a unique, publicly available, valuable resource with which to investigate the evolution of galaxies within their environment back to the earliest stages of the history of the universe. The COSMOS2015 catalog is distributed via anonymous ftp and through the usual astronomical archive systems (CDS, ESO Phase 3, IRSA).

The search for starbursts galaxies in COSMOS database by a tailored procedure that uses the photometry from SUBARU, results in 220 targets at z<0.5. The typical mass of the starburst is 10^8 and its distribution is similar to that of the quiescent galaxies in the survey at the same redshift range. From the detailed analysis of the galaxies images using the HST, the star forming clumps are characterized. The galaxies are of three different kinds, Snot, Snot and diffuse light and multiple knots. The mass of the knots are typically one order of magnitude below that of the host galaxy and the clumps in multiple knot galaxies are bigger the closer they are to the center. The sSFR however does not change with the particular position of the burst in their host galaxy, which suggests a similar process independently of their location. This result applies also to the galaxies at the largest z range (0.9). Our interpretation is that the star formation is happening at all possible locations on the galaxy discs, possibly from gas accreted from the halo or the IGM, with clumps which grow as they spiral and get to the centermost regions. Our previous work on nearby SF -tadpole galaxies of similar mass reported metallicity drops coinciding with the location of the burst what we have interpreted as SF driven by cold flows. Our results in COSMOS would be consistent with a similar interpretation and a scenario in which medium mass disks are growing by gas accretion that show up as scattered starbursts knots.

Operating procedures are explained for COSMOS (County of San Mateo Online System), a computerized information retrieval system designed for the San Mateo Educational Resources Center (SMERC), which provides interactive access to both ERIC and a local file of fugitive documents. COSMOS hardware and modem compatibility requirements are reviewed,…

Context: Strong lens candidates have been newly identified within the COSMOS field. We present VLT/FORS1 spectroscopic follow-up observations and HST/WFPC2 imaging of the system COSMOS 5921+0638, which exhibits quadruply lensed images and a perfect Einstein ring. Aims: We investigate the nature of COSMOS 5921+0638 by studying its photometric, spectroscopic and physical properties. Methods: By analyzing our VLT/FORS1 spectroscopy and Subaru/CFHT/HST imaging of COSMOS 5921+0638, we completed both an environmental analysis and detailed analytical and grid-based mass modeling to determine it properties. Results: We measured the redshifts of the lensing galaxy in COSMOS 5921+0638 (zl = 0.551 ± 0.001) and 9 additional galaxies in the field (5 of them at z ~ 0.35). The redshift of the lensed source was inferred by identifying a candidate Lyα line at zs = 3.14 ± 0.05. The mass modeling reveals the requirement of a small external shear (γ = 0.038), which is slightly larger than the lensing contribution expected by galaxy groups along the line-of-sight obtained from the zCOSMOS optical group catalog (κ_groups ~ 0.01 and γ_groups ~ 0.005). The estimated time-delays between the different images are of the order of hours to half a week and the total magnification of the background source is μ ≈ 150. The measured mass-to-light ratio of the lensing galaxy within the Einstein ring is M/LB ≈ 8.5 ± 1.6. Anomalies are observed between the measured and expected flux ratios of the images of the background AGN. Conclusions: Our analysis indicates that the ring and point-like structures in COSMOS 5921+0638 consist of a lensed high redshift galaxy hosting a low luminosity AGN (LLAGN). The observed flux ratio anomalies are probably due to microlensing by stars in the lensing galaxy and/or a combination of static phenomena. Multi-epoch, multi-band space-based observations would allow us to differentiate between the possible causes of these anomalies, since static and/or dynamic

The proposed experiments were designed to determine the effects of the absence of weight support on hindlimb muscles of the monkey: an ankle flexor (tibialis anterior, TA), two ankle extensors (medial gastrocnemius, MG and soleus, SOL), and a knee extensor (vastus lateralis, VL). These effects were assessed by examining the biochemical and morphological properties of muscle fibers obtained from biopsies in young Rhesus monkeys (3-4 Kg). Biopsies taken from ground base experiments were analyzed to determine: (1) the effects of chair restraint at 1 G on muscle properties and (2) the growth rate of flexor and extensor muscles in the Rhesus. In addition, two sets of biopsies were taken from monkeys which were in the flight pool and the four monkeys that flew on the Cosmos 2044 and 2229 biosatellite missions. Based on data collected in rats it is generally assumed that extensors atrophy to a greater extent than flexors in response to spaceflight or hindlimb suspension. Consequently, the finding that fibers in the TA (a fast flexor) of the flight monkeys atrophied, whereas fibers in the Sol (a predominantly slow extensor) and MG (a fast extensor) grew after a 14-day spaceflight (Cosmos 2044) and 12-day spaceflight (Cosmos 2229) was unexpected. In Cosmos 2044, the TA in both flight monkeys had a 21 percent decrease in fiber size, whereas the Sol and MG both had a 79 percent increase in fiber size. In Cosmos 2229, the TA in both flight monkeys showed significant atrophy, whereas the Sol and MG showed slight growth in one monkey (906) and slight atrophy in the other monkey (151).

One of the main purposes of the European educational project COSMOS (co-funded by the European Commission under the program eContentplus), is to create an experimental laboratory for the school of tomorrow in order to improve the education in astronomy by expanding the resources for teaching and learning in schools and universities and by providing more challenging and authentic learning experiences for students. A large educational database was created as a result of the project activities made by 15 partner institutions. The unusual electronic "library" offers to students and teachers unique educational resources: learning scenarios, images, presentations, videos and animations (most of them are impossible to produce in any scientific laboratory). It is freely accessible to anyone, anywhere, anytime. Our poster presents the contribution of the Shumen university (the only partner from Bulgaria) in the project: uploading more than 12000 astronomical images in the COSMOS portal; creation of 45 learning scenarios; holding 5 teaching workshops at different places for more than 100 Bulgarian teachers to use the possibilities of the COSMOS portal (including creation of their own learning scenarios). Our analysis of the questionnaires filled-in by the participating teachers shows the necessity of such projects and workshops.

We describe the design, construction and measured performance of the Kitt Peak Ohio State Multi-Object Spectrograph (KOSMOS) for the 4-m Mayall telescope and the Cerro Tololo Ohio State Multi-Object Spectrograph (COSMOS) for the 4-m Blanco telescope. These nearly identical imaging spectrographs are modified versions of the OSMOS instrument; they provide a pair of new, high-efficiency instruments to the NOAO user community. KOSMOS and COSMOS may be used for imaging, long-slit, and multi-slit spectroscopy over a 100 square arcminute field of view with a pixel scale of 0.29 arcseconds. Each contains two VPH grisms that provide R~2500 with a one arcsecond slit and their wavelengths of peak diffraction efficiency are approximately 510nm and 750nm. Both may also be used with either a thin, blue-optimized CCD from e2v or a thick, fully depleted, red-optimized CCD from LBNL. These instruments were developed in response to the ReSTAR process. KOSMOS was commissioned in 2013B and COSMOS was commissioned in 2014A.

In this manuscript we describe the experimental procedure employed at the Alfred Wegener Institute in Germany in the preparation of the simulations for the Pliocene Model Intercomparison Project (PlioMIP). We present a description of the utilized community earth system models (COSMOS) and document the procedures which we applied to transfer the Pliocene Research, Interpretation and Synoptic Mapping Project (PRISM) mid-Pliocene reconstruction into model forcing fields. The model setup and spin-up procedure are described for both the paleo and preindustrial (PI) time-slices of PlioMIP experiments 1 and 2, and general results that depict the performance of our model setup for mid-Pliocene conditions are presented. The mid-Pliocene as simulated with our COSMOS-setup and PRISM boundary conditions is both warmer and wetter than the PI. The globally averaged annual mean surface air temperature in the mid-Pliocene standalone atmosphere (fully coupled atmosphere-ocean) simulation is 17.35 °C (17.82 °C), which implies a warming of 2.23 °C (3.40 °C) relative to the respective PI control simulation.

Hosted by Brian Greene and based on his best-selling book of the same title, The Fabric of the Cosmos is a new four- part NOVA series that explores the deepest mysteries of space and time. The program was kicked-off by 30 ``Cosmic Cafes'' being held around the country funded by an NSF grant which allows SPS-NOVA to fund SPS chapters for these events. During the summer I assisted in planning this kick-off, reviewing and suggesting revisions of resources related to the NOVA series to make them relevant to an SPS audience. I also got to organize and moderate the first ``Cosmic Cafe.'' The Cosmic cafe that I organized was discussion based, with our speaker Dr. James Gates starting with a short talk and then opening the floor up for questions. By organizing a ``Cosmic cafe,'' I got real hand experience about the challenges an SPS chapter would face while organizing a cafe themselves. Based on my experience I shall also discuss the effectiveness of the first ever themed science cafe blitz. A science caf'e is an informal discussion with an expert in a very casual location, usually a restaurant, coffee shop, or a bar. A science cafe is mostly discussion based, but has a lot of freedom for the format. A ``Cosmic'' cafe is a science cafe which is based around the topics discussed in the documentary ``The Fabric of the Cosmos.''

The idea of a hierachically structured cosmos can be traced back to the Presocratic Hellada. In the fifth century BC Anaxagoras from Clazomenae developed an idea of a sort of fractal material world, by introducing the concept of seeds (spermata), or homoeomeries as Aristotle dubbed it later (Grujić 2001). Anaxagoras ideas have been grossly neglected during the Middle Ages, to be invoked by a number of post-Renaissance thinkers, like Leibniz, Kant, etc, though neither of them referred to their Greek predecessor. But the real resurrections of the hierarchical paradigm started at the beginning of the last century, with Fournier and Charlier (Grujić 2002). Second half of the 20th century witnessed an intensive development of the theoretical models based on the (multi)fractal paradigm, as well as a considerable body of the observational evidence in favour of the hierarchical cosmos (Saar 1988). We overview the state of the art of the cosmological fractal concept, both within the astrophysical (Sylos Labini et al 1998), methodological (Ribeiro 2001) and epistemological (Ribeiro and Videira 1998) context.

Water appears to be essential to all life on Earth. For this reason, "Follow the Water" has been adopted as a mantra for the search for Life in the Cosmos. Expeditions have helped to establish the limits and biodiversity of life in the most extreme environments on Earth. Microbial extremophiles inhabit acidic streams; hypersaline and hyperalkaline lakes and pools; the cold deep sea floor, permafrost, rocks, glaciers, and perennially ice-covered lakes of the polar environments; geysers, volcanic fumaroles, hydrothermal vents and hot rocks deep within the Earth's crust. The ESA Venus Express Spacecraft entered Venusian Orbit in 2006 and continues to produce exciting results. The Visible and Infrared Thermal Imaging Spectrometer (VIRTIS) instrument made the first detection of hydroxyl in the atmosphere of Venus, indicating it is much more similar to Earth and Mars than previously thought. Huge hurricane-like vortices have been found above the poles of the planet and as yet unidentified UV absorbers that form mysterious dark bands in the upper atmosphere. At 70 km and below, water vapor and sulfur dioxide combine to form sulfuric acid droplets that create a haze above the cloud tops. Thermophilic acidophiles, such as have recently been discovered on Earth, could possibly survive in the hot sulfuric acid droplets that exist in the upper atmosphere of Venus. In order to understand how to search for life elsewhere in the Solar System, over 40 VIRTIS images of Earth from Venus have been obtained to search for evidence of life on Earth. The signatures of water and molecular Oxygen were detected in the Earth s atmosphere, but the atmosphere of Venus also exhibits these signatures. The water and water ice are far more abundant on comet, the polar caps and permafrost of Mars and the icy moons of Jupiter and Saturn. These "frozen worlds" of our Solar System, are much more promising regimes where extant or extinct microbial life may exist. The ESA Mars Advanced Radar for

COSMOS, a multi-object spectrograph and imager, is a new instrument on the Blanco 4-meter telescope at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory. In order to demonstrate the instrument's operations during commissioning, we used COSMOS, its red grism and three custom slit masks to conduct a spectroscopic survey of the star-forming core of the Lupus 3 dark cloud in an effort to detect the presence of Lithium in the T Tauri stars that have been previously identified in that region. We detected the Li I 6708 Angstrom resonance transition in several (but not all) stars that were observed, consistent with prior studies that have observed Lithium in other young stars at the center of the Lupus 3 dark cloud and in other star-forming regions. These results also demonstrate the ability of COSMOS to significantly reduce the time required to complete spectroscopic surveys, relative to single-object instruments.Lackey was supported by the NOAO/KPNO Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Program which is funded by the National Science Foundation Research Experiences for Undergraduates Program (AST-1262829).

In the context of the VLA-COSMOS Deep project, additional VLA A array observations at 1.4 GHz were obtained for the central degree of the COSMOS field and combined with the existing data from the VLA-COSMOS Large project. A newly constructed Deep mosaic with a resolution of 2.''5 was used to search for sources down to 4{sigma} with 1{sigma} {approx} 12 {mu}Jy beam{sup -1} in the central 50' x 50'. This new catalog is combined with the catalog from the Large project (obtained at 1.''5 x 1.''4 resolution) to construct a new Joint catalog. All sources listed in the new Joint catalog have peak flux densities of {>=}5{sigma} at 1.''5 and/or 2.''5 resolution to account for the fact that a significant fraction of sources at these low flux levels are expected to be slightly resolved at 1.''5 resolution. All properties listed in the Joint catalog, such as peak flux density, integrated flux density, and source size, are determined in the 2.''5 resolution Deep image. In addition, the Joint catalog contains 43 newly identified multi-component sources.

The genus Cosmos is native of America and is constituted by 34 species; 28 of them are endemic of Mexico. The cosmos are used as a nematicide, antimalarial, and antioxidative agent. The aim of this study was to estimate the genetic diversity among 7 cosmos species based on random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) and inter-simple sequences repeats (ISSR) markers. With RAPD markers, the obtained polymorphism was 91.7 % and the genetic diversity was 0.33, whereas these values were 65.6%, and 0.22 from ISSR markers, respectively, indicating the presence of high genetic diversity among the Cosmos species that were analyzed. The unweighted pair group method with arithmetic mean dendrograms that were obtained with both markers were notably similar, revealing 2 clusters and indicating a clear genetic differentiation among the Cosmos species that were assessed. The first cluster comprised the species Cosmos sulphureus, Cosmos pacificus, and Cosmos diversifolius, while the second cluster included the species Cosmos purpureus, Cosmos crithmifolius, Cosmos bipinnatus, and Cosmos parviflorus. Besides this, the Cosmos species were clustered according to their collection sites. The Mantel test corroborates the correlation between the genetic distance and the geographic altitude of each Cosmos species. The results suggest that it is necessary to preserve the Cosmos species in their natural habitat in addition to the germoplasm collection for ex situ conservation. PMID:24338421

The Cosmos bipinnatus has been used in a traditional herbal remedy for various diseases such as jaundice, intermittent fever, and splenomegaly. The present study describes the preliminary evaluation of antioxidant activities and antigenotoxic effect of Cosmos bipinnatus flowers according to four different colors (white, pink, orange, and violet). The antioxidants properties were evaluated by determining TPC, DPPH RSA, ABTS RSA, and RP. The highest TPC of methanolic CFE (at concentration of 1 mg/ml) showed in violet colored CF (1,013 microM), and IC(50) of DPPH RSA, ABTS RSA, and RP were also the lowest in violet colored CFE with values of 0.61, 1.48, and 0.82 mg/ml, respectively. The antigenotoxic effect of the CFE on DNA damage induced by H(2)O(2) in human leukocytes was evaluated by Comet assay. Pretreatments with CFE produced significant reductions in oxidative DNA damage at the concentration of 500 microg/ml, except for violet colored CFE. The ED(50) value of white colored CFE has shown the highest inhibition (0.40 mg/ml) on H(2)O(2) induced DNA damage, followed by orange > pink > violet color. These results suggested that Cosmos bipinnatus has significant antioxidant activity and protective effect against oxidative DNA damage. PMID:18758962

Summary: Efficient workflows to shepherd clinically generated genomic data through the multiple stages of a next-generation sequencing pipeline are of critical importance in translational biomedical science. Here we present COSMOS, a Python library for workflow management that allows formal description of pipelines and partitioning of jobs. In addition, it includes a user interface for tracking the progress of jobs, abstraction of the queuing system and fine-grained control over the workflow. Workflows can be created on traditional computing clusters as well as cloud-based services. Availability and implementation: Source code is available for academic non-commercial research purposes. Links to code and documentation are provided at http://lpm.hms.harvard.edu and http://wall-lab.stanford.edu. Contact: dpwall@stanford.edu or peter_tonellato@hms.harvard.edu. Supplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. PMID:24982428

Accelerated charged particles have been used on Earth since 1930 to explore the very essence of matter, for industrial applications, and for medical treatments. Throughout the universe nature employs a dizzying array of acceleration processes to produce particles spanning twenty orders of magnitude in energy range, while shaping our cosmic environment. Here, we introduce and review the basic physical processes causing particle acceleration, in astrophysical plasmas from geospace to the outer reaches of the cosmos. These processes are chiefly divided into four categories: adiabatic and other forms of non-stochastic acceleration, magnetic energy storage and stochastic acceleration, shock acceleration, and plasma wave and turbulent acceleration. The purpose of this introduction is to set the stage and context for the individual papers comprising this monograph.

Experiments on insects, higher plants and lower fungi were carried out aboard the biological satellite Cosmos-1129, in Earth orbit, from 25 September to 14 October 1979. The main objective of these experiments was to gain more profound knowledge of the effect of weightlessness on living organisms and to study the mechanisms by which these various organisms with different life cycles can adjust and develop in weightlessness. Experiments on insects (Drosophila melanogaster) were made with a view towards understanding gravitational preference in flies, the life cycle of which took place on board the biosatellite under conditions of artificial gravity. Experiments on higher plants (Zea mays, Arabidopsis taliana, Lycopersicum esculentum) and lower fungi (Physarum polycephalum) were performed.

The program of the 7-day flight of the biosatellite Cosmos-1667 launched in July 1985 included experiments on two rhesus monkeys, ten Wistar SPF rats, ten newts, Drosophila flies, maize seedlings, lettuce sprouts, and unicellular organisms - Tetrahymena. The primate study demonstrated that transition to orbital flight was accompanied by a greater excitability of the vestibular apparatus and an increased linear blood flow velocity in the common carotid artery. The rat studies showed that atrophy of antigravity muscles and osteoporosis of limb bones developed even during short-term exposure to microgravity. The experiments on other living systems revealed no microgravity effects on the cell division rate, proliferative activity of cells of regenerating tissues and organs, energy metabolism of developing insects, structure or chemical composition of higher plant seedlings.

The different contributions of the present volume illuminate the interaction between Einstein and his colleagues when the foundations of modern cosmology were laid: First, the relativistic effects in the solar system, the gravitational redshift in the solar spectrum, and Einstein's relations with Freundlich and Eddington. Second, the cosmological models of Einstein, de Sitter, Friedmann, and Lemaître, which were discussed controversely till the end of the 1920s. Other scientists have also widened or critically questioned Einstein's insight and knowledge: Schwarzschild, Selety, Silberstein, and Mandl, whose life and work is discussed in separate articles. In those days, politics more than ever in history had influenced the lifes of scientists. Therefore, some comments on the ``political cosmos'' that has influenced decisively Einstein's life are also given. A special role in popularizing Einstein's world view was played by Archenhold Observatory in Berlin. A list of Einstein memorial places and a bibliographic list conclude the present book. All papers are written in German, and have English abstracts.

Optical positions from the SuperCOSMOS Sky Survey have been compared in detail with accurate radio positions that define the second realisation of the International Celestial Reference Frame (ICRF2). The comparison was limited to the IIIaJ plates from the UK/AAO and Oschin (Palomar) Schmidt telescopes. A total of 1 373 ICRF2 sources was used, with the sample restricted to stellar objects brighter than BJ = 20 and Galactic latitudes |b| > 10°. Position differences showed an rms scatter of 0.16 arcsec in right ascension and declination. While overall systematic offsets were < 0.1 arcsec in each hemisphere, both the systematics and scatter were greater in the north.

Two major anthocyanins, cyanidin 3-O-glucoside and 3-O-rutinoside, were isolated from the black flowers of Cosmos atrosanguineus cultivar 'Choco Mocha', together with three minor anthocyanins, cyanidin 3-O-malonylglucoside, pelargonidin 3-O-glucoside and 3-O-rutinoside. A chalcone, butein 4'-O-glucoside and three minor flavanones were isolated from the red flowers of C. atrosanguineis x C. sulphureus cultivar 'Rouge Rouge'. The anthocyanins and chalcone accumulation of cultivar 'Choco Mocha' and its hybrid cultivars 'Brown Rouge', 'Forte Rouge', 'Rouge Rouge' and 'Noel Rouge' was surveyed by quantitative HPLC. Total anthocyanins of black flower cultivars 'Choco Mocha' and 'Brown Rouge' were 3-4-folds higher than that of the red flower cultivar 'Noel Rouge'. On the other hand, total chalcone of 'Noel Rouge' was 10-77-folds higher compared with those of other cultivars, 'Brown Rouge', 'Forte Rouge' and 'Rouge Rouge'. It was shown that the flower color variations from red to black of Chocolate Cosmos and its hybrids are due to the difference in the relative amounts of anthocyanins and chalcone. PMID:26996024

Inquiry-based activities that utilize the Cool Cosmosimage galleries have been designed and developed by K12 teachers enrolled in The Invisible Universe Online for Teachers course. The exploration activities integrate the Our Infrared World Gallery (http://coolcosmos.ipac.caltech.edu/image_galleries/our_ir_world_gallery.html) with either the Infrared Zoo gallery (http://coolcosmos.ipac.caltech.edu/image_galleries/ir_zoo/index.html) or the Infrared Yellowstone image http://coolcosmos.ipac.caltech.edu/image_galleries/ir_yellowstone/index.html) and video (http://coolcosmos.ipac.caltech.edu/videos/ir_yellowstone/index.html) galleries. Complete instructor guides have been developed for the activities and will be presented by the authors in poster and CD form. Although the activities are written for middle and highschool learners, they can easily be adapted for college audiences. The Our Infrared World Gallery exploration helps learners think critically about visible light and infrared light as they compare sets of images (IR and visible light) of known objects. For example: by taking a regular photograph of a running faucet, can you tell if it is running hot or cold water? What new information does the IR image give you? The Infrared Zoo activities encourage learners to investigate the differences between warm and cold blooded animals by comparing sets of IR and visible images. In one activity, learners take on the role of a pit viper seeking prey in various desert and woodland settings. The main activities are extended into the real world by discussing and researching industrial, medical, and societal applications of infrared technologies. The Infrared Yellowstone lessons give learners a unique perspective on Yellowstone National Park and it's spectacular geologic and geothermal features. Infrared video technology is highlighted as learners make detailed observations about the visible and infrared views of the natural phenomena. The "Cool Cosmos" EPO activities are

We present research on the morphologies, spectra, and environments of ≈2350 'green valley' galaxies at 0.2 < z < 1.0 in the COSMOS field. The bimodality of dust-corrected NUV–r {sup +} color is used to define 'green valley'; it removes dusty star-forming galaxies from galaxies that are truly transitioning between the blue cloud and the red sequence. Morphological parameters of green galaxies are intermediate between those of blue and red galaxy populations, both on the Gini-asymmetry and the Gini-M{sub 20} planes. Approximately 60%-70% of green disk galaxies have intermediate or big bulges, and only 5%-10% are pure disk systems, based on morphological classification using the Zurich Estimator of Structural Types. The obtained average spectra of green galaxies are intermediate between blue and red ones in terms of [O II], Hα, and Hβ emission lines. Stellar population synthesis on the average spectra shows that green galaxies are on average older than blue galaxies but younger than red galaxies. Green galaxies and blue galaxies have similar projected galaxy density (Σ{sub 10}) distributions at z > 0.7. At z < 0.7, the fractions of M{sub *} < 10{sup 10.0} M{sub ☉} green galaxies located in a dense environment are found to be significantly larger than those of blue galaxies. The morphological and spectral properties of green galaxies are consistent with the transitioning population between the blue cloud and the red sequence. The possible mechanisms for quenching star formation activities in green galaxies are discussed. The importance of active galactic nucleus feedback cannot be well constrained in our study. Finally, our findings suggest that environmental conditions, most likely starvation and harassment, significantly affect the transformation of M{sub *} < 10{sup 10.0} M{sub ☉} blue galaxies into red galaxies, especially at z < 0.5.

I will present the results we published in a couple of recent papers (Lanzuisi et al. 2015, A&A 573A 137, Lanzuisi et al. 2015, arXiv 1505.01153) on the properties of X-ray selected Compton Thick (CT, NH>10^24 cm^-2) AGN, in the COSMOS survey. We exploited the rich multi-wavelength dataset available in this field, to show that CT AGN tend to harbor smaller, rapidly growing SMBH with respect to unobscured AGN, and have a higher chance of being hosted by star-forming, merging and post-merger systems.We also demonstrated the detectability of even more heavily obscured AGN (NH>10^25 cm^-2), thanks to a truly multi-wavelength approach in the same field. The extreme source detected in this way shows strong evidences of ongoing powerful AGN feedback, detected as blue-shifted wings of high ionization optical emission lines such as [NeV] and [FeVII], as well as of the [OIII] emission line.The results obtained from these works point toward a scenario in which highly obscured AGN occupy a peculiar place in the galaxy-AGN co-evolution process, in which both the host and the SMBH rapidly evolve toward the local relations.We will also present estimates on the detectability of such extreme sources up to redshift ~6-7 with Athena. Combining the most up to date models for the Luminosity Function of CT AGN at high z, aggressive data analysis techniques on faint sources, and the current Athena survey design, we demonstrate that we will detect, and recognize as such, a small (few to ten) but incredibly valuable sample of CT AGN at such high redshift.

We present research on the morphologies, spectra, and environments of ≈2350 "green valley" galaxies at 0.2 < z < 1.0 in the COSMOS field. The bimodality of dust-corrected NUV-r + color is used to define "green valley"; it removes dusty star-forming galaxies from galaxies that are truly transitioning between the blue cloud and the red sequence. Morphological parameters of green galaxies are intermediate between those of blue and red galaxy populations, both on the Gini-asymmetry and the Gini-M 20 planes. Approximately 60%-70% of green disk galaxies have intermediate or big bulges, and only 5%-10% are pure disk systems, based on morphological classification using the Zurich Estimator of Structural Types. The obtained average spectra of green galaxies are intermediate between blue and red ones in terms of [O II], Hα, and Hβ emission lines. Stellar population synthesis on the average spectra shows that green galaxies are on average older than blue galaxies but younger than red galaxies. Green galaxies and blue galaxies have similar projected galaxy density (Σ10) distributions at z > 0.7. At z < 0.7, the fractions of M * < 1010.0 M ⊙ green galaxies located in a dense environment are found to be significantly larger than those of blue galaxies. The morphological and spectral properties of green galaxies are consistent with the transitioning population between the blue cloud and the red sequence. The possible mechanisms for quenching star formation activities in green galaxies are discussed. The importance of active galactic nucleus feedback cannot be well constrained in our study. Finally, our findings suggest that environmental conditions, most likely starvation and harassment, significantly affect the transformation of M * < 1010.0 M ⊙ blue galaxies into red galaxies, especially at z < 0.5.

We present strong evidence for dual active galactic nuclei (AGNs) in the z = 0.36 galaxy COSMOS J100043.15+020637.2. COSMOS Hubble Space Telescope (HST) imaging of the galaxy shows a tidal tail, indicating that the galaxy recently underwent a merger, as well as two bright point sources near the galaxy's center. The luminosities of these sources (derived from the HST image) and their emission line flux ratios (derived from Keck/DEIMOS slit spectroscopy) suggest that both are AGNs and not star-forming regions or supernovae. Observations from zCOSMOS, the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, XMM-Newton, Spitzer, and the Very Large Array fortify the evidence for AGN activity. With HST imaging we measure a projected spatial offset between the two AGNs of 1.75 {+-} 0.03 h {sup -1} kpc, and with DEIMOS we measure a 150 {+-} 40 km s{sup -1} line-of-sight velocity offset between the two AGNs. Combined, these observations provide substantial evidence that COSMOS J100043.15+020637.2 is a merger-remnant galaxy with dual AGNs.

We investigate the correlations in galaxy shapes between optical and radio wavelengths using archival observations of the COSMOS field. Cross-correlation studies between different wavebands will become increasingly important for precision cosmology as future large surveys may be dominated by systematic rather than statistical errors. In the case of weak lensing, galaxy shapes must be measured to extraordinary accuracy (shear systematics of <0.01%) in order to achieve good constraints on dark energy parameters. By using shape information from overlapping surveys in optical and radio bands, robustness to systematics may be significantly improved without loss of constraining power. Here we use HST-ACS optical data, VLA radio data, and extensive simulations to investigate both our ability to make precision measurements of source shapes from realistic radio data, and to constrain the intrinsic astrophysical scatter between the shapes of galaxies as measured in the optical and radio wavebands. By producing a new image from the VLA-COSMOS L-band radio visibility data that is well suited to galaxy shape measurements, we are able to extract precise measurements of galaxy position angles. Comparing to corresponding measurements from the HST optical image, we set a lower limit on the intrinsic astrophysical scatter in position angles, between the optical and radio bands, of σα > 0.212π radians (or 38.2°) at a 95% confidence level.

This paper presents Bigger Bits, an interactive multimedia learning environment that teaches students about VLSI within the context of computer electronics. The system was built with COSMOS (Content Oriented semantic Modelling Overlay Scheme), which is a modelling scheme that we developed for enabling the semantic content of multimedia to be used…

Using the example of McGill University's bijural program, explores how teaching the common and civil law traditions together provides an opportunity to teach in law's "cosmos" rather than its "empire," so that a bijural legal education can plainly and confidently ally itself with the great university tradition of prizing knowledge over…

Discusses emerging characteristics of early adolescents from a Montessorian perspective. Considers adolescents' revelations related to cosmic education, their need to serve, their need to think and to feel, and their need to know the cosmos through finding one's place in it. Discusses samples from students' cosmic autobiographies. (KB)

The proposition is discussed that throughout its history, the development of the human race, physically, mentally and spiritually, has been shaped by the cosmos, never more so than at the present time when it engages in a search for extraterrestrial intelligence.

Two male young-adult rhesus monkeys were flown on the Soviet Biosatellite Cosmos 1667 for seven days from July 10-17, 1985. Both animals were instrumented to record neurophysiological parameters. One animal, Gordyy, was additionally instrumented to record cardiovascular changes. Space capsule and environmental parameters were very similar to those of previous missions. On Cosmos 1514, which flew for five days in 1983, one animal was fitted with a left carotid artery cuff to measure blood pressure and flow velocity. An additional feature of Cosmos 1667 was a postflight control study using the flight animal. Intermittent postural tilt tests were also conducted before and after spaceflight and synchronous control studies, to simulate the fluid shifts associated with spaceflight. The experiment results support the conclusion derived from Cosmos 1514 that significant cardiovascular changes occur with spaceflight. The changes most clearly seen were rapid initial decreases in heart rate and further decreases with continued exposure to microgravity. The triggering mechanism appeared to be a headward shift in blood and tissue fluid volume which, in turn, triggered adaptive cardiovascular changes. Adaptive changes took place rapidly and began to stabilize after the first two days of flight. However, these changes did not plateau in the animal by the last day of the mission.

Results of spaceborne experiments onboard the Cosmos 936 satellite are reported. Alterations in normal bone chemistry, muscle structure, and general physiology resulting from spaceflight are covered along with measurements of cosmic radiation and its potential hazard to man during prolonged spaceflights. Postflight activities involving the seven U.S. experiments are emphasized.

We present the catalog of optical and infrared counterparts of the Chandra COSMOS-Legacy Survey, a 4.6 Ms Chandra program on the 2.2 deg2 of the COSMOS field, combination of 56 new overlapping observations obtained in Cycle 14 with the previous C-COSMOS survey. In this Paper we report the i, K, and 3.6 μm identifications of the 2273 X-ray point sources detected in the new Cycle 14 observations. We use the likelihood ratio technique to derive the association of optical/infrared (IR) counterparts for 97% of the X-ray sources. We also update the information for the 1743 sources detected in C-COSMOS, using new K and 3.6 μm information not available when the C-COSMOS analysis was performed. The final catalog contains 4016 X-ray sources, 97% of which have an optical/IR counterpart and a photometric redshift, while ≃54% of the sources have a spectroscopic redshift. The full catalog, including spectroscopic and photometric redshifts and optical and X-ray properties described here in detail, is available online. We study several X-ray to optical (X/O) properties: with our large statistics we put better constraints on the X/O flux ratio locus, finding a shift toward faint optical magnitudes in both soft and hard X-ray band. We confirm the existence of a correlation between X/O and the the 2-10 keV luminosity for Type 2 sources. We extend to low luminosities the analysis of the correlation between the fraction of obscured AGNs and the hard band luminosity, finding a different behavior between the optically and X-ray classified obscured fraction.

The scaling between X-ray observables and mass for galaxy clusters and groups is instrumental for cluster-based cosmology and an important probe for the thermodynamics of the intracluster gas. We calibrate a scaling relation between the weak lensing mass and X-ray spectroscopic temperature for 10 galaxy groups in the COSMOS field, combined with 55 higher-mass clusters from the literature. The COSMOS data includes Hubble Space Telescope imaging and redshift measurements of 46 source galaxies per arcminute{sup 2}, enabling us to perform unique weak lensing measurements of low-mass systems. Our sample extends the mass range of the lensing calibrated M-T relation an order of magnitude lower than any previous study, resulting in a power-law slope of 1.48{sub −0.09}{sup +0.13}. The slope is consistent with the self-similar model, predictions from simulations, and observations of clusters. However, X-ray observations relying on mass measurements derived under the assumption of hydrostatic equilibrium have indicated that masses at group scales are lower than expected. Both simulations and observations suggest that hydrostatic mass measurements can be biased low. Our external weak lensing masses provide the first observational support for hydrostatic mass bias at group level, showing an increasing bias with decreasing temperature and reaching a level of 30%-50% at 1 keV.

The present COSMOS data were collected on a variety of telescopes and instruments, as well as from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) second data release (DR2) archive (u, g, r, i, z) and Hubble Space Telescope (HST, F814W). This paper covers the processing of the data obtained with Suprime-Cam on the Subaru 8.3m telescope (Bj, Vj, g+, r+, i+, z+, NB816), Megaprime on the 3.6m Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope (CFHT, u*, i*), FLAMINGOS on the Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO, Ks) 4m telescope, and the Infrared Side Port Imager on the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO, Ks) 4m telescope during the 2004-2005 observing season. The COSMOS I band catalog is an I band selected multi-color catalog for 2 square degrees centered on the COSMOS field at 10:00:28.6, +02:12:21. The total magnitude (SExtractor mag_auto) for a source must have an AB magnitude of less than i+<25 to appear in the archival catalog. All photometry is in the AB magnitude system and measured in a 3 arc second aperture on PSF-matched images unless otherwise noted. A magnitude of -99 indicates a photometric measurement was not possible due to lack of data, a large number of bad pixels, or saturation. A magnitude of 99.0 indicates no detection. In the case of no detection the error given for the object is the 1 sigma limiting magnitude at the position of the souce. The photometry is as measured on the images with no corrections applied. We recommend applying the magnitude offsets in the paper to obtain the best possible photometry. More details on the photometry are available in the paper. The Photometric Redshifts included in this catalog are described in Mobasher et al. (2007ApJS..172..117M) and have an accuracy of dz/(1+z)<0.031 at z<1.2 and I<24. It is important to pay attention to the flag columns at the end of the catalog. The cleanest catalog will have all flags set to 0. The photometry flags indicate the area of the photometry aperture, in square arc seconds, which is in a masked

The present COSMOS data were collected on a variety of telescopes and instruments, as well as from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) second data release (DR2) archive (u, g, r, i, z) and Hubble Space Telescope (HST, F814W). This paper covers the processing of the data obtained with Suprime-Cam on the Subaru 8.3m telescope (Bj, Vj, g+, r+, i+, z+, NB816), Megaprime on the 3.6m Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope (CFHT, u*, i*), FLAMINGOS on the Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO, Ks) 4m telescope, and the Infrared Side Port Imager on the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO, Ks) 4m telescope during the 2004-2005 observing season. The COSMOS I band catalog is an I band selected multi-color catalog for 2 square degrees centered on the COSMOS field at 10:00:28.6, +02:12:21. The total magnitude (SExtractor mag_auto) for a source must have an AB magnitude of less than i+<25 to appear in the archival catalog. All photometry is in the AB magnitude system and measured in a 3" aperture on PSF-matched images unless otherwise noted. A magnitude of -99 indicates a photometric measurement was not possible due to lack of data, a large number of bad pixels, or saturation. A magnitude of 99.0 indicates no detection. In the case of no detection the error given for the object is the 1 sigma limiting magnitude at the position of the source. The photometry is as measured on the images with no corrections applied. We recommend applying the magnitude offsets in the paper to obtain the best possible photometry. More details on the photometry are available in the paper. The Photometric Redshifts included in this catalog are described in Mobasher et al. (2007ApJS..172..117M) and have an accuracy of dz/(1+z)<0.031 at z<1.2 and I<24. It is important to pay attention to the flag columns at the end of the catalog. The cleanest catalog will have all flags set to 0. The photometry flags indicate the area of the photometry aperture, in square arc seconds, which is in a masked region. A

Recent large galaxy surveys conducted with NASA's Hubble Space Telescope Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) have provided unprecedented legacy datasets, which allow astronomers to charter the evolution of galaxies over a large fraction of the age of the Universe. The Galaxies and Cosmos Explorer Tool (GCET; http://www.as.utexas.edu/gcet/) is an online web-based tool that allows the general public and students to actively participate in this exciting adventure through quantitative analyses of HST images from the Galaxy Evolution from Morphology and SEDs (GEMS) survey, one of the widest-area galaxy surveys conducted in two filters with ACS to date. The tool allows users to surf the vast cosmos and access ACS images of over 8,000 galaxies over the last eight billion years. For galaxies of interest, users can measure the size, determine the lookback time for concordance cosmology, perform morphological classification on images at two rest-frame wavelengths, and gauge the different stellar populations present. Users can record their measurements, as well as reference information, such as coordinates and redshift, of each galaxy into Excel spreadsheets for further analysis. The celestial coordinates can be used to extract further multiwavelength data from existing archives and upcoming virtual observatories. For undergraduate classes, more advanced IDL or C-based analyses that employ the full samples, can be combined with the visualization capabilities of GCET in order to explore the nature of interesting objects, such as the most massive galaxies, starbursting systems, interacting and merging galaxies. GCET provides a powerful tool for discovery learning in undergraduate science and introductory classes, as well as high schools. We thank the GEMS collaboration, and acknowledge support from NASA grants NAG5-13063 and NASA NNG 06GB99G, NSF grant AST-0607748, and the Faculty And Student Teams for Technology (FAST Tex) award from the University of Texas Division of

Cosmos 1887, a biosatellite containing biological and radiation experiments from the Soviet Union, the United States and seven other countries, was launched on September 29, 1987. One Rhesus monkey's feeder stopped working two days into the flight and a decision was made to terminate the mission after 12 1/2 days. The biosatellite returned to Earth on October 12, 1987. A system malfunction, during the reentry procedure, caused the Cosmos 1887 spacecraft to land approximately 1800 miles beyond the intended landing site and delayed the start of the postflight procedures by approximately 44 hours. Further information on the conditions at landing and postflight activities is included in the Mission Operations portion of this document. U.S. and U.S.S.R. specialists jointly conducted 26 experiments on this mission, including the postflight transfer of data, hardware and biosamples to the U.S.

The Chandra COSMOS Survey (C-COSMOS) is a large, 1.8 Ms, Chandra program that has imaged the central 0.9 deg{sup 2} of the COSMOS field down to limiting depths of 1.9 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -16} erg cm{sup -2} s{sup -1} in the soft (0.5-2 keV) band, 7.3 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -16} erg cm{sup -2} s{sup -1} in the hard (2-10 keV) band, and 5.7 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -16} erg cm{sup -2} s{sup -1} in the full (0.5-10 keV) band. In this paper we report the i, K, and 3.6 {mu}m identifications of the 1761 X-ray point sources. We use the likelihood ratio technique to derive the association of optical/infrared counterparts for 97% of the X-ray sources. For most of the remaining 3%, the presence of multiple counterparts or the faintness of the possible counterpart prevented a unique association. For only 10 X-ray sources we were not able to associate a counterpart, mostly due to the presence of a very bright field source close by. Only two sources are truly empty fields. The full catalog, including spectroscopic and photometric redshifts and classification described here in detail, is available online. Making use of the large number of X-ray sources, we update the 'classic locus' of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) defined 20 years ago in soft X-ray surveys and define a new locus containing 90% of the AGNs in the survey with full-band luminosity >10{sup 42} erg s{sup -1}. We present the linear fit between the total i-band magnitude and the X-ray flux in the soft and hard bands, drawn over two orders of magnitude in X-ray flux, obtained using the combined C-COSMOS and XMM-COSMOS samples. We focus on the X-ray to optical flux ratio (X/O) and we test its known correlation with redshift and luminosity, and a recently introduced anti-correlation with the concentration index (C). We find a strong anti-correlation (though the dispersion is of the order of 0.5 dex) between X/O computed in the hard band and C and that 90% of the obscured AGNs in the sample with morphological

We propose to complete the legacy of Spitzer/IRAC over COSMOS by extending the deep coverage to the full 1.8 sq degree field, producing a nearly homogenous and contiguous map unparalleled in terms of area and depth. Ongoing and scheduled improvements in the supporting optical-to-NIR data down to ultradeep limits have reconfirmed COSMOS as a unique field for probing the bright end of the z=6-11 universe and the formation of large-scale structures. However, currently only one-third of the field has received sufficiently deep IRAC coverage to match the new optical/near-IR limits. Here we request deep matching IRAC data over the full 1.8 sq degree field to detect almost one million galaxies. The proposed observations will allow us to 1) constrain the galaxy stellar mass function during the epoch of reionization at z=6-8 with ~10,000 galaxies at these redshifts, 2) securely identify the brightest galaxies at 9 < z < 11, 3) trace the growth of stellar mass at 1 < z < 8 and the co-evolution of galaxies and their dark matter halos, 4) identify (proto)clusters and large scale structures, and 5) reveal dust enshrouded starbursts and the first quiescent galaxies at 3 < z < 6. The Spitzer Legacy over COSMOS will enable a wide range of discoveries beyond these science goals owing to the unique array of multiwavelength data from the X-ray to the radio. COSMOS is a key target for ongoing and future studies with ALMA and for spectroscopy from the ground, and with the timely addition of the Spitzer Legacy it will prove to be a crucial treasury for efficient planning and early follow-up with JWST.

We present spectroscopic redshifts of a large sample of galaxies with I {sub AB} < 22.5 in the COSMOS field, measured from spectra of 10,644 objects that have been obtained in the first two years of observations in the zCOSMOS-bright redshift survey. These include a statistically complete subset of 10,109 objects. The average accuracy of individual redshifts is 110 km s{sup -1}, independent of redshift. The reliability of individual redshifts is described by a Confidence Class that has been empirically calibrated through repeat spectroscopic observations of over 600 galaxies. There is very good agreement between spectroscopic and photometric redshifts for the most secure Confidence Classes. For the less secure Confidence Classes, there is a good correspondence between the fraction of objects with a consistent photometric redshift and the spectroscopic repeatability, suggesting that the photometric redshifts can be used to indicate which of the less secure spectroscopic redshifts are likely right and which are probably wrong, and to give an indication of the nature of objects for which we failed to determine a redshift. Using this approach, we can construct a spectroscopic sample that is 99% reliable and which is 88% complete in the sample as a whole, and 95% complete in the redshift range 0.5 < z < 0.8. The luminosity and mass completeness levels of the zCOSMOS-bright sample of galaxies is also discussed.

The collision of Iridium 33 and Cosmos 2251, on 10 February 2009, was the first known unintentional hypervelocity collision in space of intact satellites. Iridium 33 was an active commercial telecommunications satellite, while Cosmos 2251 was a derelict communication satellite of the Strela-2M class. The collision occurred at a relative velocity of 11.6 km/s at an altitude of approximately 790 km over the Great Siberian Plain and near the northern apex of Cosmos 2251 s orbit. This paper describes the physical and orbital characteristics of the relevant spacecraft classes and reports upon our analysis of the resulting debris clouds size, mass, area-to-mass ratio, and relative velocity/directionality distributions. We compare these distributions to those predicted by the NASA breakup model and notable recent fragmentation events; in particular, we compare the area-to-mass ratio distribution for each spacecraft to that exhibited by the FY-1C debris cloud for the purpose of assessing the relative contribution of modern aerospace materials to debris clouds resulting from energetic collisions. In addition, we examine the long-term consequences of this event for the low Earth orbit (LEO) environment. Finally, we discuss "lessons learned", which may be incorporated into NASA s environmental models.

Hosted by Brian Greene and based on his best selling book of the same title, The Fabric of the Cosmos is a new four part NOVA series that explores the deepest mysteries of space and time. The program was kicked off by more than 30 'Cosmic Cafes' around the country, as part of a Society of Physics Students, NOVA outreach effort funded by an NSF grant. A Cosmic Café is a science café based on the topics discussed in The Fabric of the Cosmos. Science cafes are open events for non-scientists, where they can have an informal discussion with a scientist in a very casual location, usually a restaurant, coffee shop, or a bar. During the summer I assisted in planning this kick off, by reviewing science café and The Fabric of the Cosmos resources and suggesting revisions to make them more relevant for an SPS audience. I also organized and moderated the first Cosmic Café. The café that I organized was discussion based, with the speaker, Dr. James Gates, starting with a short talk and then opening up the floor for questions. Organizing a Cosmic Café gave me first-hand experience with the challenges an SPS chapter might face while organizing a café themselves. I will discuss lessons learned and the effectiveness of the first ever themed science café blitz.

Ly{alpha} emitting galaxies can be used to study cosmological reionization, because a neutral intergalactic medium (IGM) scatters Ly{alpha} photons into diffuse halos whose surface brightness falls below typical survey detection limits. Here, we present the Ly{alpha} emitting galaxy LAE J095950.99+021219.1, identified at redshift z = 6.944 in the COSMOS field using narrowband imaging and follow-up spectroscopy with the IMACS instrument on the Magellan I Baade telescope. With a single object spectroscopically confirmed so far, our survey remains consistent with a wide range of IGM neutral fraction at z Almost-Equal-To 7, but further observations are planned and will help clarify the situation. Meantime, the object we present here is only the third Ly{alpha}-selected galaxy to be spectroscopically confirmed at z {approx}> 7, and is {approx}2-3 times fainter than the previously confirmed z Almost-Equal-To 7 Ly{alpha} galaxies.

Simulations of nearby (0.015COSMOS ACS images if they had been observed at z~0.7 and ~1.2. These simulations include surface brightness dimming, the effects of bandpass shifting, the changing spatial resolution, and the increased noise. By adding the SDSS galaxies to random locations in the COSMOSimages, we also simulate the effects of chance superpositions of high-redshift galaxies with unrelated foreground or background objects. We have used these simulated images, together with those of real COSMOS galaxies at these same redshifts, to undertake a ``blind'' morphological classification of galaxies to identify those that appear to be undergoing mergers and thus to estimate the change in merger fraction with redshift. We find that real mergers are harder to recognize at high redshift, and also that the chance superposition of unrelated galaxies often produces the appearance of mergers where in reality none exist. In particular, we estimate that 1.5%-2.0% of objects randomly added to ACS images are misclassified as mergers due to projection with unrelated objects and, as a result, that 40% of the apparent mergers in COSMOS at z=0.7 are likely to be spurious. Correcting for these two competing effects, we find that the fraction of galaxies undergoing mergers increases as (1+z)3.8+/-1.2 to z~0.7 and that this trend appears to continue to z=1.2. Merger candidates at z~0.7 are bluer than the parent population, especially when the statistical effects of the chance projections are accounted for. The automated nonparametric measures of morphology from the 2007 work of Scarlata et al. show that the underlying galaxies of our merger candidates are more asymmetric than the population as a whole, and are often associated with irregular morphology. Nevertheless, the majority (~60%) of the merger candidates appear to be associated with spiral galaxies, although

A quantitative method of mapping the web usage of an innovative educational portal is applied to analyze the behaviour of users of the COSMOS Science Education Portal. The COSMOS Portal contains user-generated resources (that are uploaded by its users). It has been designed to support a science teacher's search, retrieval and access to both,…

The Cosmos 2044 biosatellite mission offered the opportunity for radiation measurements under conditions which are seldom available (an inclination of 82.3 degrees and altitude of 294 x 216 km). Measurements were made on the outside of the spacecraft under near-zero shielding conditions. Also, this mission was the first in which active temperature recorders (the ATR-4) were flown to record the temperature profiles of detector stacks. Measurements made on this mission provide a comparison and test for modeling of depth doses and LET spectra for orbital parameters previously unavailable. Tissue absorbed doses from 3480 rad (252 rad/d) down to 0.115 rad (8.33 mrad/d) were measured at different depths (0.0146 and 3.20 g/sq. cm, respectively) with averaged TLD readings. The LET spectra yielded maximum and minimum values of integral flux of 27.3 x 10-4 and 3.05 x 10(exp -4) cm(exp -2).s(exp -1).sr(exp -4) of dose rate of 7.01 and 1.20 mrad/d, and of dose equivalent rate of 53.8 and 11.6 mrem/d, for LET(infinity).H2O is greater than or equal to 4 keV/micro-m. Neutron measurements yielded 0.018 mremld in the thermal region, 0.25 mrem/d in the resonance region and 3.3 mrem/d in the high energy region. The TLD depth dose and LET spectra have been compared with calculations from the modeling codes. The agreement is good but some further refinements are in order. In comparing measurements on Cosmos 2044 with those from previous Cosmos missions (orbital inclinations of 62.8 degrees) there is a greater spread (maximum to minimum) in depth doses and an increased contribution from GCR's, and higher LET particles, in the heavy particle fluxes.

Heavily obscured, Compton thick (CT, NH> 1024 cm-2) active galactic nuclei (AGN) may represent an important phase in AGN/galaxy co-evolution and are expected to provide a significant contribution to the cosmic X-ray background at its peak. However, unambiguously identifying CT AGN beyond the local Universe is a challenging task even in the deepest X-ray surveys, and given the expected low spatial density of these sources in the 2-10 keV band, large area surveys are needed to collect sizable samples. Through direct X-ray spectra analysis, we selected 39 heavily obscured AGN (NH>3 × 1023 cm-2) at bright X-ray fluxes (F2-10 ≳ 10-14 erg s-1 cm-2) in the 2 deg2 XMM-COSMOS survey. After selecting CT AGN based on the fit of a simple absorbed two power law model to the shallow XMM-Newton data, the presence of bona fide CT AGN was confirmed in 80% of the sources using deeper Chandra data and more complex models. The final sample comprises ten CT AGN (six of them also have a detected Fe Kα line with EW ~ 1 keV), spanning a wide range of redshifts (z ~ 0.1-2.5) and luminosity (L2-10 ~ 1043.5-1045 erg s-1) and is complemented by 29 heavily obscured AGN spanning the same redshift and luminosity range. We collected the rich multi-wavelength information available for all these sources, in order to study the distribution of super massive black hole and host properties, such as black hole mass (MBH), Eddington ratio (λEdd), stellar mass (M∗), specific star formation rate (sSFR) in comparison with a sample of unobscured AGN. We find that highly obscured sources tend to have significantly smaller MBH and higher λEdd with respect to unobscured sources, while a weaker evolution in M∗ is observed. The sSFR of highly obscured sources is consistent with the one observed in the main sequence of star forming galaxies, at all redshifts. We also present and briefly discuss optical spectra, broadband spectral energy distribution (SED) and morphology for the sample of ten CT AGN. Both

In 2011, a leaf blight disease was observed on cosmos (Cosmos bipinnatus) leaves in Nonsan, Korea. The causal pathogen was isolated and identified based on morphological and molecular approaches. Morphological characteristics of the pathogen matched well with the Alternaria cosmosa and also easily distinguishable from Alternaria zinniae reported from cosmos seeds by producing branched beak. Phylogenetically, the pathogen could not be distinguished from A. passiflorae based on the sequence analysis of a combined data set of Alt a1 and gpd genes. However, A. passiflorae was distinguished from the present species by having conidiophores with 4 to 5 conidiogenous loci. The results indicate that the present Alternaria species is A. cosmosa. Pathogenicity tests revealed that the isolate was pathogenic to the leaves of Cosmos bipinnatus. This is the first report of Alternaria blight disease caused by A. cosmosa on cosmos in Korea. PMID:25774114

Researchers examined the effect of microgravity during spaceflight on lung tissue. The ultrastructure of the left lungs of 5 Czechoslovakian Wister rats flown on the 13 day, 19+ hour Cosmos 2044 mission was examined and compared to 5 vivarium and 5 synchronous controls at 1-g conditions, and 5 rats exposed to 14 days of tail suspension. Pulmonary hemorrage and alveolar adema of unknown origin occurred to a greater extent in the flight, tail-suspended, and synchronous control animals, and in the dorsal regions of the lung when compared with the vivarium controls. The cause of these changes, which are possibly due to an increase in pulmonary vascular pressure, requires further investigation.

Biological experiments planned as an international venture for COSMOS 1129 satellite include tests of: (1) adaptation of rats to conditions of weightlessness, and readaption to Earth's gravity, (2) possibility of fertilization and embryonic development in weightlessness, (3) heat exchange processes, (4) amount of gravity force preferred by fruit flies for laying eggs (given a choice of three centrifugal zones), (5) growth of higher plants from seeds, (6) effects of weightlessness on cells in culture, and (7) radiation danger from heavy nuclei, and electrostatic protection from charged particles.

Biological experiments planned as an international venture for COSMOS 1129 satellite include tests of: (1) adaptation of rats to conditions of weightlessness, and readaption to Earth's gravity; (2) possibility of fertilization and embryonic development in weightlessness; (3) heat exchange processes; (4) amount of gravity force preferred by fruit flies for laying eggs (given a choice of three centrifugal zones); (5) growth of higher plants from seeds; (6) effects of weightlessness on cells in culture and (7) radiation danger from heavy nuclei, and electrostatic protection from charged particles.

Medieval cosmology was a fusion of pagan Greek ideas and biblical descriptions of the world, especially the creation account in Genesis. Planets, Stars, and Orbs describes medieval conceptions of the cosmos as understood by scholastic theologians and natural philosophers in the universities of western Europe from the thirteenth to the seventeenth centuries. Not only are the major ideas and arguments of medieval cosmology described and analysed, but much attention is paid to the responses of scholastic natural philosophers of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries to the challenges posed by the new science and astronomy as represented by Copernicus, Tycho Brahe, Galileo and Kepler.

It is becoming widely recognized that a majority of baryons in the cosmos are in the plasma state. But, fundamental disagreements about the properties and behavior of electro-magnetic fields in these plasmas exist between the science of modern astronomy and the experimentally verified laws of electrical engineering and physics. Some astronomers claim that magnetic fields can be open-ended - that they begin on or beneath the Sun's surface and extend outward to infinity. Astrophysicists have claimed that galactic magnetic fields begin and end on molecular clouds. Electrical engineers, most physicists, and the pioneers in electromagnetic field theory disagree - magnetic fields have no beginning or end. Since these two viewpoints are mutually exclusive, both cannot be correct; one must be completely false. Many astrophysicists claim that magnetic fields are 'frozen into' electric plasma. We also examine the basis for this claim. It has been shown to be incorrect in the laboratory. The hypothetical 'magnetic merging' mechanism is also reviewed in light of both theoretical and experimental investigations. The cause of large-scale filamentation in the cosmos is also simply revealed by experimental results obtained in plasma laboratories.

We investigate the effects of the environment on star formation in a sample of massive luminous and ultra-luminous infrared galaxies (LIRGs and ULIRGs) with S(24 {mu}m) >80 {mu}Jy and i {sup +} < 24 in the COSMOS field. We exploit the accurate photometric redshifts in COSMOS to characterize the galaxy environment and study the evolution of the fraction of LIRGs and ULIRGs in different environments in the redshift range z = 0.3-1.2 and in bins of stellar mass. We find that the environment plays a role in the star formation processes and evolution of LIRGs and ULIRGs. We find an overall increase of the ULIRG+LIRG fraction in an optically selected sample with increasing redshift, as expected from the evolution of the star formation rate (SFR) density. We find that the ULIRG+LIRG fraction decreases with increasing density up to z {approx} 1, and that the dependence on density flattens with increasing redshift. We do not observe the reversal of the SFR density relation up to z = 1 in massive LIRGs and ULIRGs, suggesting that such reversal might occur at higher redshift in this infrared luminosity range.

The role of major mergers in galaxy and black hole formation is not well-constrained. To help address this, we develop an automated method to identify late-stage galaxy mergers before coalescence of the galactic cores. The resulting sample of mergers is distinct from those obtained using pair-finding and morphological indicators. Our method relies on median-filtering of high-resolution images to distinguish two concentrated galaxy nuclei at small separations. This method does not rely on low surface brightness features to identify mergers, and is therefore reliable to high redshift. Using mock images, we derive statistical contamination and incompleteness corrections for the fraction of late-stage mergers. The mock images show that our method returns an uncontaminated (<10%) sample of mergers with projected separations between 2.2 and 8 kpc out to z∼1. We apply our new method to a magnitude-limited (m{sub FW} {sub 814}<23) sample of 44,164 galaxies from the COSMOS HST/ACS catalog. Using a mass-complete sample with logM{sub ∗}/M{sub ⊙}>10.6 and 0.25COSMOS, we find that the star formation rates and X-ray selected active galactic nucleus (AGN) activity in likely late-stage mergers are higher by factors of ∼2 relative to those of a control sample. Combining our sample with more

An important challenge in cancer genomics is precise detection of structural variations (SVs) by high-throughput short-read sequencing, which is hampered by the high false discovery rates of existing analysis tools. Here, we propose an accurate SV detection method named COSMOS, which compares the statistics of the mapped read pairs in tumor samples with isogenic normal control samples in a distinct asymmetric manner. COSMOS also prioritizes the candidate SVs using strand-specific read-depth information. Performance tests on modeled tumor genomes revealed that COSMOS outperformed existing methods in terms of F-measure. We also applied COSMOS to an experimental mouse cell-based model, in which SVs were induced by genome engineering and gamma-ray irradiation, followed by polymerase chain reaction-based confirmation. The precision of COSMOS was 84.5%, while the next best existing method was 70.4%. Moreover, the sensitivity of COSMOS was the highest, indicating that COSMOS has great potential for cancer genome analysis. PMID:26833260

An important challenge in cancer genomics is precise detection of structural variations (SVs) by high-throughput short-read sequencing, which is hampered by the high false discovery rates of existing analysis tools. Here, we propose an accurate SV detection method named COSMOS, which compares the statistics of the mapped read pairs in tumor samples with isogenic normal control samples in a distinct asymmetric manner. COSMOS also prioritizes the candidate SVs using strand-specific read-depth information. Performance tests on modeled tumor genomes revealed that COSMOS outperformed existing methods in terms of F-measure. We also applied COSMOS to an experimental mouse cell-based model, in which SVs were induced by genome engineering and gamma-ray irradiation, followed by polymerase chain reaction-based confirmation. The precision of COSMOS was 84.5%, while the next best existing method was 70.4%. Moreover, the sensitivity of COSMOS was the highest, indicating that COSMOS has great potential for cancer genome analysis. PMID:26833260

We present a detailed study of a peculiar source detected in the COSMOS survey at z = 0.359. Source CXOC J100043.1+020637, also known as CID-42, has two compact optical sources embedded in the same galaxy. The distance between the two, measured in the HST/ACS image, is 0.''495 {+-} 0.''005 that, at the redshift of the source, corresponds to a projected separation of 2.46 {+-} 0.02 kpc. A large ({approx}1200 km s{sup -1}) velocity offset between the narrow and broad components of H{beta} has been measured in three different optical spectra from the VLT/VIMOS and Magellan/IMACS instruments. CID-42 is also the only X-ray source in COSMOS, having in its X-ray spectra a strong redshifted broad absorption iron line and an iron emission line, drawing an inverted P-Cygni profile. The Chandra and XMM-Newton data show that the absorption line is variable in energy by {Delta}E = 500 eV over four years and that the absorber has to be highly ionized in order not to leave a signature in the soft X-ray spectrum. That these features-the morphology, the velocity offset, and the inverted P-Cygni profile-occur in the same source is unlikely to be a coincidence. We envisage two possible explanations, both exceptional, for this system: (1) a gravitational wave (GW) recoiling black hole (BH), caught 1-10 Myr after merging; or (2) a Type 1/Type 2 system in the same galaxy where the Type 1 is recoiling due to the slingshot effect produced by a triple BH system. The first possibility gives us a candidate GW recoiling BH with both spectroscopic and imaging signatures. In the second case, the X-ray absorption line can be explained as a BAL-like outflow from the foreground nucleus (a Type 2 AGN) at the rearer one (a Type 1 AGN), which illuminates the otherwise undetectable wind, giving us the first opportunity to show that fast winds are present in obscured active galactic nuclei (AGNs), and possibly universal in AGNs.

The program of the 5day flight of the biosatellite Cosmos-1514 (December 1983) envisaged experimental investigations the purpose of which was to ascertain the effect of short-term microgravity on the physiology, growth and development of various animal and plant species. The study of Rhesus-monkeys has shown that they are an adequate model for exploring the mechanisms of physiological adaptation to weightlessness of the vestibular apparatus and the cardiovascular system. The rat experiment has demonstrated that mammalian embryos, at least during the last term of pregnancy, can develop in microgravity. This finding has been confirmed by fish studies. The experiment on germinating seeds and adult plants has given evidence that microgravity produces no effect on the metabolism of seedlings and on the flowering stage.

We performed 2D, axisymmetric, MHD simulations with Cosmos++ in order to examine the growth of the magnetorotational instability (MRI) in core-collapse supernovae. We have initialized a non-rotating 15 Msolar progenitor, infused with differential rotation and poloidal magnetic fields. The collapse of the iron core is simulated with the Shen EOS, and the parametric Ye and entropy evolution. The wavelength of the unstable mode in the post-collapse environment is expected to be only ~200 m. In order to achieve the fine spatial resolution requirement, we employed remapping technique after the iron core has collapsed and bounced. The MRI unstable region appears near the equator and angular momentum and entropy are transported outward. Higher resolution remap run display more vigorous overturns and stronger transport of angular momentum and entropy. Our results are in agreement with the earlier work by Akiyama et al. [1] and Obergaulinger et al. [2].

Submillimeter galaxies (SMGs) represent a dust-obscured high-redshift population undergoing massive star formation activity. Their properties and space density have suggested that they may evolve into spheroidal galaxies residing in galaxy clusters. In this Letter, we report the discovery of compact ({approx}10''-20'') galaxy overdensities centered at the position of three SMGs detected with the Max-Planck millimeter bolometer camera in the COSMOS field. These associations are statistically significant. The photometric redshifts of galaxies in these structures are consistent with their associated SMGs; all of them are between z = 1.4and2.5, implying projected physical sizes of {approx}170 kpc for the overdensities. Our results suggest that about 30% of the radio-identified bright SMGs in that redshift range form in galaxy density peaks in the crucial epoch when most stars formed.

Highly obscured active galactic nuclei (AGN) are common in nearby galaxies, but are difficult to observe beyond the local Universe, where they are expected to significantly contribute to the black hole accretion rate density. Furthermore, Compton-thick (CT) absorbers (NH ≳ 1024 cm-2) suppress even the hard X-ray (2-10 keV) AGN nuclear emission, and therefore the column density distribution above 1024 cm-2 is largely unknown. We present the identification and multi-wavelength properties of a heavily obscured (NH ≳ 1025 cm-2), intrinsically luminous (L2-10 > 1044 erg s-1) AGN at z = 0.353 in the COSMOS field. Several independent indicators, such as the shape of the X-ray spectrum, the decomposition of the spectral energy distribution and X-ray/[NeV] and X-ray/6 μm luminosity ratios, agree on the fact that the nuclear emission must be suppressed by a ≳1025 cm-2 column density. The host galaxy properties show that this highly obscured AGN is hosted in a massive star-forming galaxy, showing a barred morphology, which is known to correlate with the presence of CT absorbers. Finally, asymmetric and blueshifted components in several optical high-ionization emission lines indicate the presence of a galactic outflow, possibly driven by the intense AGN activity (LBol/LEdd = 0.3-0.5). Such highly obscured, highly accreting AGN are intrinsically very rare at low redshift, whereas they are expected to be much more common at the peak of the star formation and BH accretion history, at z ~ 2-3. We demonstrate that a fully multi-wavelength approach can recover a sizable sample of such peculiar sources in large and deep surveys such as COSMOS.

The scaling between X-ray observables and mass for galaxy clusters and groups is instrumental for cluster-based cosmology and an important probe for the thermodynamics of the intracluster gas. We calibrate a scaling relation between the weak lensing mass and X-ray spectroscopic temperature for 10 galaxy groups in the COSMOS field, combined with 55 higher-mass clusters from the literature. The COSMOS data includes Hubble Space Telescope imaging and redshift measurements of 46 source galaxies per arcminute2, enabling us to perform unique weak lensing measurements of low-mass systems. Our sample extends the mass range of the lensing calibrated M-T relation an order of magnitude lower than any previous study, resulting in a power-law slope of 1.48^{+0.13}_{-0.09}. The slope is consistent with the self-similar model, predictions from simulations, and observations of clusters. However, X-ray observations relying on mass measurements derived under the assumption of hydrostatic equilibrium have indicated that masses at group scales are lower than expected. Both simulations and observations suggest that hydrostatic mass measurements can be biased low. Our external weak lensing masses provide the first observational support for hydrostatic mass bias at group level, showing an increasing bias with decreasing temperature and reaching a level of 30%-50% at 1 keV. Based on observations with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, obtained at the Space Telescope Science Institute, which is operated by AURA Inc., under NASA contract NAS 5-26555. Also based on data collected at the Subaru Telescope, which is operated by the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan; the XMM-Newton, an ESA science mission with instruments and contributions directly funded by ESA Member States and NASA; the European Southern Observatory under Large Program 175.A-0839, Chile; Kitt Peak National Observatory, Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory, and the National Optical Astronomy Observatory, which

NASA's Physics of the Cosmos (PCOS) and Cosmic Origins (COR) Program Offices, established in 2011, reside at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC). The offices serve as the implementation arm for the Astrophysics Division at NASA Headquarters. We present an overview of the programs' technology development activities and technology investment portfolio, funded by NASA's Strategic Astrophysics Technology (SAT) program. We currently fund 19 technology advancements to enable future PCOS and COR missions to help answer the questions "How did our universe begin and evolve?" and "How did galaxies, stars, and planets come to be?" We discuss the process for addressing community-provided technology gaps and Technology Management Board (TMB)-vetted prioritization and investment recommendations that inform the SAT program. The process improves the transparency and relevance of our technology investments, provides the community a voice in the process, and promotes targeted external technology investments by defining needs and identifying customers. The programs' goal is to promote and support technology development needed to enable missions envisioned by the National Research Council's (NRC) "New Worlds, New Horizons in Astronomy and Astrophysics" (NWNH) Decadal Survey report [1] and the Astrophysics Implementation Plan (AIP) [2]. These include technology development for dark energy, gravitational waves, X-ray and inflation probe science, and a 4m-class UV/optical telescope to conduct imaging and spectroscopy studies, as a post-Hubble observatory with significantly improved sensitivity and capability.

Utilizing the multi-band photometry catalog of the COSMOS (Cosmic Evolution Survey)/UltraVISTA (Ultra-deep Visible and Infrared Survey Telescope for Astronomy) field and the high-resolution HST WFC3 (Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3) near-infrared imaging from the CANDELS (Cosmic Assembly Near-infrared Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey) field, we present a quantitative study of the morphological classification of galaxy for a large mass-selected sample. Our sample includes 362 galaxies within photometric redshift 1leq zleq3 and stellar mass M_{*}geq 10^{10.5} M_{odot}. The results from the rest-frame (U-V) vs. (V-J) (UVJ) colors classification, visual inspection, nonparametric morphology analysis, and structural parameters study are in good agreement with each other. Quiescent galaxies (QGs) classified by UVJ colors generally have larger Sérsic index (n) and Gini coefficient (G), smaller size (r_mathrm{e}) and moment (M_{20}), and they are visually compact. While star-forming galaxies (SFGs) are reversed. In the meantime, we explore the size evolution with redshift for various divisions of QG and SFG samples, and confirm that both of size will enlarge with time, but QGs are rapider than SFGs. Moreover, we find that the choice of division between QGs and SFGs (i.e. colour, shape, morphology) is not particularly critical.

NASA's Physics of the Cosmos (PCOS) and Cosmic Origins (COR) Program Offices, established in 2011, reside at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC). The offices serve as the implementation arm for the Astrophysics Division at NASA Headquarters. We present an overview of the programs' technology development activities and technology investment portfolio, funded by NASA's Strategic Astrophysics Technology (SAT) program. We currently fund 19 technology advancements to enable future PCOS and COR missions to help answer the questions "How did our universe begin and evolve?" and "How did galaxies, stars, and planets come to be?" We discuss the process for addressing community-provided technology gaps and Technology Management Board (TMB)-vetted prioritization and investment recommendations that inform the SAT program. The process improves the transparency and relevance of our technology investments, provides the community a voice in the process, and promotes targeted external technology investments by defining needs and identifying customers. The programs' goal is to promote and support technology development needed to enable missions envisioned by the National Research Council's (NRC) "New Worlds, New Horizons in Astronomy and Astrophysics" (NWNH) Decadal Survey report [1] and the Astrophysics Implementation Plan (AIP) [2]. These include technology development for dark energy, gravitational waves, X-ray and inflation probe science, and a 4m-class UV/optical telescope to conduct imaging and spectroscopy studies, as a post-Hubble observatory with significantly improved sensitivity and capability.

Utilizing the multi-band photometric data of the COSMOS (Cosmic Evolution Survey)/UltraVISTA (Ultra-deep Visible and Infrared Survey Telescope for Astronomy) field and the high-resolution HST WFC3 (Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3) near-infrared images in the CANDELS (Cosmic Assembly Near-infrared Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey) field, we have selected 362 galaxies with the redshifts of 1≤ z ≤3 and the stellar masses of M* ≥ 1010.5M⊙, and made the classification study on the morphologies of these massive galaxies. The results from the UVJ ((U-V) vs (V-J)) two-color diagram classification, visual classification, non-model based classification (Gini coefficient G and moment index M20), and model based classification (Sérsic index n) are in good agreement with each other. Compared with the star-forming galaxies (SFGs), the quiescent galaxies (QGs) defined by the UVJ two-color diagram exhibit the compact elliptical structures, and generally have larger n and G, but smaller M20 and galaxy's effective radius re. The evolution of galaxy size with the redshift is obvious for various QG and SFG samples defined by the different classification systems (two-color diagram classification system, model and non-model based classification systems), and this evolutionary tendency is stronger for QGs in comparison with SFGs, independent to the selection of galaxy classification methods.

A quantitative method of mapping the web usage of an innovative educational portal is applied to analyze the behaviour of users of the COSMOS Science Education Portal. The COSMOS Portal contains user-generated resources (that are uploaded by its users). It has been designed to support a science teacher's search, retrieval and access to both, scientific and educational resources. It also aims to introduce in and familiarize teachers with an innovative methodology for designing, expressing and representing educational practices in a commonly understandable way through the use of user-friendly authoring tools that are available through the portal. As a new science education portal that includes user-generated content, the COSMOS Portal encounters the well-known "new product/service challenge": to convince the users to use its tools, which facilitate quite fast lesson planning and lesson preparation activities. To respond to this challenge, the COSMOS Portal operators implemented a validation process by analyzing the usage data of the portal in a 10 month time-period. The data analyzed comprised: (a) the temporal evolution of the number of contributors and the amount of content uploaded to the COSMOS Portal; (b) the number of portal visitors (categorized as all-visitors, new-visitors, and returning-visitors) and (c) visitor loyalty parameters (such as page-views; pages/visit; average time on site; depth of visit; length of visit). The data is augmented with data associated with the usage context (e.g. the time of day when most of the activities in the portal take place). The quantitative results indicate that the exponential growth of the contributors to the COSMOS Portal is followed by an exponential growth of the uploaded content. Furthermore, the web usage statistics demonstrate significant changes in users' behaviour during the period under study, with returning visitors using the COSMOS Portal more frequently, mainly for lesson planning and preparation (in the

We study a sample of 69 X-ray detected early-type galaxies (ETGs), selected from the Chandra COSMOS survey, to explore the relation between the X-ray luminosity of hot gaseous halos (L{sub X,{sub gas}}) and the integrated stellar luminosity (L{sub K} ) of the galaxies, in a range of redshift extending out to z = 1.5. In the local universe, a tight, steep relationship has been established between these two quantities (L{sub X,gas}∼L{sub K}{sup 4.5}), suggesting the presence of largely virialized halos in X-ray luminous systems. We use well-established relations from the study of local universe ETGs, together with the expected evolution of the X-ray emission, to subtract the contribution of low-mass X-ray binary populations from the X-ray luminosity of our sample. Our selection minimizes the presence of active galactic nuclei (AGNs), yielding a sample representative of normal passive COSMOS ETGs; therefore, the resulting luminosity should be representative of gaseous halos, although we cannot exclude other sources such as obscured AGNs or enhanced X-ray emission connected with embedded star formation in the higher-z galaxies. We find that most of the galaxies with estimated L{sub X} < 10{sup 42} erg s{sup –1} and z < 0.55 follow the L{sub X,{sub gas}}-L{sub K} relation of local universe ETGs. For these galaxies, the gravitational mass can be estimated with a certain degree of confidence from the local virial relation. However, the more luminous (10{sup 42} erg s{sup –1}

We study a sample of 69 X-ray detected early-type galaxies (ETGs), selected from the Chandra COSMOS survey, to explore the relation between the X-ray luminosity of hot gaseous halos (L X, gas) and the integrated stellar luminosity (LK ) of the galaxies, in a range of redshift extending out to z = 1.5. In the local universe, a tight, steep relationship has been established between these two quantities (L_{X,gas}\\sim L_K^{4.5}), suggesting the presence of largely virialized halos in X-ray luminous systems. We use well-established relations from the study of local universe ETGs, together with the expected evolution of the X-ray emission, to subtract the contribution of low-mass X-ray binary populations from the X-ray luminosity of our sample. Our selection minimizes the presence of active galactic nuclei (AGNs), yielding a sample representative of normal passive COSMOS ETGs; therefore, the resulting luminosity should be representative of gaseous halos, although we cannot exclude other sources such as obscured AGNs or enhanced X-ray emission connected with embedded star formation in the higher-z galaxies. We find that most of the galaxies with estimated LX < 1042 erg s-1 and z < 0.55 follow the L X, gas-LK relation of local universe ETGs. For these galaxies, the gravitational mass can be estimated with a certain degree of confidence from the local virial relation. However, the more luminous (1042 erg s-1

We report the first results from the Z -FOURGE survey: the discovery of a candidate galaxy cluster at z = 2.2 consisting of two compact overdensities with red galaxies detected at {approx}> 20{sigma} above the mean surface density. The discovery was made possible by a new deep (K{sub s} {approx}< 24.8 AB 5{sigma}) Magellan/FOURSTAR near-IR imaging survey with five custom medium-bandwidth filters. The filters pinpoint the location of the Balmer/4000 A break in evolved stellar populations at 1.5 < z < 3.5, yielding significantly more accurate photometric redshifts than possible with broadband imaging alone. The overdensities are within 1' of each other in the COSMOS field and appear to be embedded in a larger structure that contains at least one additional overdensity ({approx}10{sigma}). Considering the global properties of the overdensities, the z = 2.2 system appears to be the most distant example of a galaxy cluster with a population of red galaxies. A comparison to a large {Lambda}CDM simulation suggests that the system may consist of merging subclusters, with properties in between those of z > 2 protoclusters with more diffuse distributions of blue galaxies and the lower-redshift galaxy clusters with prominent red sequences. The structure is completely absent in public optical catalogs in COSMOS and only weakly visible in a shallower near-IR survey. The discovery showcases the potential of deep near-IR surveys with medium-band filters to advance the understanding of environment and galaxy evolution at z > 1.5.

I will present results we published in two recent papers (Lanzuisi et al. 2015, A&A 573A 137, Lanzuisi et al. 2015, A&A 578A 120) on the properties of X-ray selected Compton Thick (CT, NH>10^{24} cm^{-2}) AGN, in the XMM-COSMOS survey. We exploited the rich multi-wavelength dataset available in this field, to show that CT AGN tend to harbor smaller, rapidly growing SMBH with respect to unobscured AGN, and have a higher chance of being hosted by star-forming, merging and post-merger systems. We also demonstrated the detectability of even more heavily obscured AGN (NH>10^{25} cm^{-2}), thanks to a truly multi-wavelength approach in the same field, and to the unrivaled XMM sensitivity. The extreme source detected in this way shows strong evidences of ongoing powerful AGN feedback, detected as blue-shifted wings of high ionization optical emission lines such as [NeV] and [FeVII], as well as of the [OIII] emission line. The results obtained from these works point toward a scenario in which highly obscured AGN occupy a peculiar place in the galaxy-AGN co-evolution process, in which both the host and the SMBH rapidly evolve toward the local relations.

Weak lensing statistics are best for large numbers wide surveys with greater number of galaxies and deep surveys with a higher number density of galaxies. Although space-based surveys are unparalleled in their depth, ground-based surveys are the more cost-effective way to survey wide regions of the sky. We assess the relative merits of the two observing platforms, by using premier, multi-band, ground-based Subaru SuprimeCam data and space-based Hubble ACS data, in the 2 sq. degree COSMOS field in three ways. First, we compare shear measurements of individual galaxies and identify the relative calibration of the two datasets in terms of the largest subset in magnitude and size that is consistent. Second, we compare spaceand ground-based mass maps to quantify the relative completeness and contamination of the resulting cluster catalogs. We find that more clusters with XMM catalog counterparts are detected from space than ground and some ground-based clusters are possibly spurious detections. Third, we perform a detailed comparison of the precision with which it is possible to reconstruct the mass and size of four clusters at various redshifts identified from both ground and space. We find that the noise is much lower from space in all three investigations, but find no evidence for systematic overestimation or underestimation of the individual cluster properties by either survey.

The Physics of the Cosmos (PCOS) Program Office was established in FY11 and resides at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC). The office serves as the implementation arm for the Astrophysics Division at NASA Headquarters for PCOS Program related matters. We present an overview of the Program’s technology management activities and the Program’s technology development portfolio. We discuss the process for addressing community-provided technology needs and the Technology Management Board (TMB)-vetted prioritization and investment recommendations. This process improves the transparency and relevance of technology investments, provides the community a voice in the process, and leverages the technology investments of external organizations by defining a need and a customer. Goals for the PCOS Program envisioned by the National Research Council’s (NRC) “New Worlds, New Horizons in Astronomy and Astrophysics” (NWNH) Decadal Survey report include science missions and technology development for dark energy, gravitational waves, X-ray, and inflation probe science.

The purpose of the current study was to further validate use of the rhesus monkey as a model for humans in future space flight testing. The areas of immunological importance examined in the Cosmos 2229 flight were represented by two sets of studies. The first set of studies determined the effect of space flight on the ability of bone marrow cells to respond to granulocyte/monocyte colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF). GM-CSF is an important regulator in the differentiation of bone marrow cells of both monocyte/macrophage and granulocyte lineages and any change in the ability of these cells to respond to GM-CSF can result in altered immune function. A second set of studies determined space flight effects on the expression of cell surface markers on both spleen and bone marrow cells. Immune cell markers included in this study were those for T-cell, B-cell, natural killer cell, and interleukin-2 populations. Variations from a normal cell population percentage, as represented by these markers, can be correlated with alterations in immunological function. Cells were stained with fluorescein-labelled antibodies directed against the appropriate antigens, and then analyzed using a flow cytometer.

I will present results we published in two recent papers (Lanzuisi et al. 2015, A&A 573A 137, Lanzuisi et al. 2015, A≈A 578A 120) on the properties of X-ray selected Compton Thick (CT, NH>10^{24} cm^{-2}) AGN, in the XMM-COSMOS survey. We exploited the rich multi-wavelength dataset available in this field, to show that CT AGN tend to harbor smaller, rapidly growing SMBH with respect to unobscured AGN, and have a higher chance of being hosted by star-forming, merging and post-merger systems. We also demonstrated the detectability of even more heavily obscured AGN (NH>10^{25} cm^{-2}), thanks to a truly multi-wavelength approach in the same field, and to the unrivaled XMM sensitivity. The extreme source detected in this way shows strong evidences of ongoing powerful AGN feedback, detected as blue-shifted wings of high ionization optical emission lines such as [NeV] and [FeVII], as well as of the [OIII] emission line. The results obtained from these works point toward a scenario in which highly obscured AGN occupy a peculiar place in the galaxy-AGN co-evolution process, in which both the host and the SMBH rapidly evolve toward the local relations.

We present infrared, optical, and X-ray data of 48 X-ray bright, optically dull active galactic nuclei (AGNs) in the COSMOS field. These objects exhibit the X-ray luminosity of an AGN but lack broad and narrow emission lines in their optical spectrum. We show that despite the lack of optical emission lines, most of these optically dull AGNs are not well described by a typical passive red galaxy spectrum: instead they exhibit weak but significant blue emission like an unobscured AGN. Photometric observations over several years additionally show significant variability in the blue emission of four optically dull AGNs. The nature of the blue and infrared emission suggest that the optically inactive appearance of these AGNs cannot be caused by obscuration intrinsic to the AGNs. Instead, up to approx70% of optically dull AGNs are diluted by their hosts, with bright or simply edge-on hosts lying preferentially within the spectroscopic aperture. The remaining approx30% of optically dull AGNs have anomalously high f{sub X} /f{sub O} ratios and are intrinsically weak, not obscured, in the optical. These optically dull AGNs are best described as a weakly accreting AGN with a truncated accretion disk from a radiatively inefficient accretion flow.

The Chandra COSMOS Survey (C-COSMOS) is a large, 1.8 Ms, Chandra program that covers the central contiguous {approx}0.92 deg{sup 2} of the COSMOS field. C-COSMOS is the result of a complex tiling, with every position being observed in up to six overlapping pointings (four overlapping pointings in most of the central {approx}0.45 deg{sup 2} area with the best exposure, and two overlapping pointings in most of the surrounding area, covering an additional {approx}0.47 deg{sup 2}). Therefore, the full exploitation of the C-COSMOS data requires a dedicated and accurate analysis focused on three main issues: (1) maximizing the sensitivity when the point-spread function (PSF) changes strongly among different observations of the same source (from {approx}1 arcsec up to {approx}10 arcsec half-power radius); (2) resolving close pairs; and (3) obtaining the best source localization and count rate. We present here our treatment of four key analysis items: source detection, localization, photometry, and survey sensitivity. Our final procedure consists of a two step procedure: (1) a wavelet detection algorithm to find source candidates and (2) a maximum likelihood PSF fitting algorithm to evaluate the source count rates and the probability that each source candidate is a fluctuation of the background. We discuss the main characteristics of this procedure, which was the result of detailed comparisons between different detection algorithms and photometry tools, calibrated with extensive and dedicated simulations.

The 'Cosmic Evolution Survey' (COSMOS) enables the study of the spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) because of the deep coverage and rich sampling of frequencies from X-ray to radio. Here we present an SED catalog of 413 X-ray (XMM-Newton)-selected type 1 (emission line FWHM > 2000 km s{sup -1}) AGNs with Magellan, SDSS, or VLT spectrum. The SEDs are corrected for Galactic extinction, broad emission line contributions, constrained variability, and host galaxy contribution. We present the mean SED and the dispersion SEDs after the above corrections in the rest-frame 1.4 GHz to 40 keV, and show examples of the variety of SEDs encountered. In the near-infrared to optical (rest frame {approx}8 {mu}m-4000 A), the photometry is complete for the whole sample and the mean SED is derived from detections only. Reddening and host galaxy contamination could account for a large fraction of the observed SED variety. The SEDs are all available online.

We describe the details of the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) Wide Field Channel (WFC) observations of the COSMOS field, including the data calibration and processing procedures. We obtained a total of 583 orbits of HST ACS/WFC imaging in the F814W filter, covering a field that is 1.64 deg2 in area, the largest contiguous field ever imaged with HST. The median exposure depth across the field is 2028 s (one HST orbit), achieving a limiting point-source depth AB(F814W)=27.2 (5 σ). We also present details of the astrometric image registration and distortion removal and image combination using MultiDrizzle, motivating the choice of our final pixel scale (30 mas pixel-1), based on the requirements for weak-lensing science. The final set of images are publicly available through the archive sites at IPAC and STScI, along with further documentation on how they were produced. Based on observations with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, obtained at the Space Telescope Science Institute, which is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA), Inc., under NASA contract NAS 5-26555 also based on data collected at: the Subaru Telescope, which is operated by the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan; the XMM-Newton, an ESA science mission with instruments and contributions directly funded by ESA Member States and NASA; the European Southern Observatory under Large Program 175.A-0839, Chile; Kitt Peak National Observatory, Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory, and the National Optical Astronomy Observatory, which are operated by AURA under cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation; the National Radio Astronomy Observatory which is a facility of the National Science Foundation operated under cooperative agreement by Associated Universities, Inc; and the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope (CFHT) with MegaPrime/MegaCam operated as a joint project by the CFHT Corporation, CEA/DAPNIA, the National

Livers from rats flown aboard Cosmos 2044 were analyzed for protein, carbohydrate (glycogen), and lipids as well as the activities of a number of key enzymes involved in metabolism of these compounds and xenobiotics. The major differences between the flight group and the synchronous control were elevations in microsomal protein, liver glycogen content, tyrosine aminotransferase, and tryptophan oxygenase and reductions in sphingolipids and the rate-limiting enzyme of heme biosynthesis delta-aminolevulinic acid synthase. These results provide further evidence that spaceflight has pronounced and diverse effects on liver function; however, some of the results with samples from Cosmos 2044 differed notably from those from previous spaceflights. This may be due to conditions of spaceflight and/or the postflight recovery period for Cosmos 2044.

The half-a-field shift tiling strategy was designed to uniformly cover the COSMOS Hubble area in depth and point-spread function (PSF) size by combining the old C-COSMOS (Elvis+, 2009, J/ApJS/184/158) observations with the new Chandra ones (see Figure 1). We summarize the main properties of the new ACIS-I Chandra COSMOS-Legacy observations in Table 1. The observations took place in four blocks: 2012 November to 2013 January; 2013 March to July; 2013 October to 2014 January; and 2014 March. The mean net effective exposure time per field was 48.8ks after all the cleaning and reduction operations. (2 data files).

We present the largest high-redshift (3 < z < 6.85) sample of X-ray-selected active galactic nuclei (AGNs) on a contiguous field, using sources detected in the Chandra COSMOS-Legacy survey. The sample contains 174 sources, 87 with spectroscopic redshift and the other 87 with photometric redshift (z phot). In this work, we treat z phot as a probability-weighted sum of contributions, adding to our sample the contribution of sources with z phot < 3 but z phot probability distribution >0 at z > 3. We compute the number counts in the observed 0.5–2 keV band, finding a decline in the number of sources at z > 3 and constraining phenomenological models of the X-ray background. We compute the AGN space density at z > 3 in two different luminosity bins. At higher luminosities (logL(2–10 keV) > 44.1 erg s‑1), the space density declines exponentially, dropping by a factor of ˜20 from z ˜ 3 to z ˜ 6. The observed decline is ˜80% steeper at lower luminosities (43.55 erg s‑1 < logL(2–10 keV) < 44.1 erg s‑1) from z ˜ 3 to z ˜ 4.5. We study the space density evolution dividing our sample into optically classified Type 1 and Type 2 AGNs. At logL(2–10 keV) > 44.1 erg s‑1, unobscured and obscured objects may have different evolution with redshift, with the obscured component being three times higher at z ˜ 5. Finally, we compare our space density with predictions of quasar activation merger models, whose calibration is based on optically luminous AGNs. These models significantly overpredict the number of expected AGNs at logL (2–10 keV) > 44.1 erg s‑1 with respect to our data.

The AAO/UKST SuperCOSMOS Hα Survey (SHS) was, when completed in 2003, a powerful addition to extant wide-field surveys. The combination of areal coverage, spatial resolution and sensitivity in a narrow imaging band, still marks it out today as an excellent resource for the astronomical community. The 233 separate fields are available online in digital form, with each field covering 25 deg2. The SHS has been the motivation for equivalent surveys in the north, and new digital Hα surveys now beginning in the south such as VPHAS+. It has been the foundation of many important discovery projects with the Macquarie/AAO/Strasbourg Hα planetary nebula project being a particularly successful example. However, the full potential of the SHS has been hampered by lack of a clear route to acceptable flux calibration from the base photographic data. We have determined the calibration factors for 170 individual SHS fields, and present a direct pathway to the measurement of integrated Hα fluxes and surface brightnesses for resolved nebulae detected in the SHS. We also include a catalogue of integrated Hα fluxes for >100 planetary and other nebulae measured from the SHS, and use these data to show that fluxes, accurate to ±0.10-0.14 dex (˜25-35 per cent), can be obtained from these fields. For the remaining 63 fields, a mean calibration factor of 12.0 counts pixel-1 R-1 can be used, allowing the determination of reasonable integrated fluxes accurate to better than ±0.2 dex (˜50 per cent). We outline the procedures involved and the caveats that need to be appreciated in achieving such flux measurements. This paper forms a handy reference source that will significantly increase the scientific utility of the SHS.

We investigated the fraction of [O II] emitters in galaxies at z {approx} 0.9 as a function of the local galaxy density in the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) COSMOS 2 deg{sup 2} field. [O II] emitters are selected by the narrowband excess technique with the NB711-band imaging data taken with Suprime-Cam on the Subaru telescope. We carefully selected 614 photo-z-selected galaxies with M{sub U3500} < -19.31 at z = 0.901 - 0.920, which includes 195 [O II] emitters, to directly compare the results with our previous study at z {approx} 1.2. We found that the fraction is almost constant at 0.3 Mpc{sup -2} < {Sigma}{sub 10th} < 10 Mpc{sup -2}. We also checked the fraction of galaxies with blue rest-frame colors of NUV - R < 2 in our photo-z-selected sample, and found that the fraction of blue galaxies does not significantly depend on the local density. On the other hand, the semi-analytic model of galaxy formation predicted that the fraction of star-forming galaxies at z {approx} 0.9 decreases with increasing projected galaxy density even if the effects of the projection and the photo-z error in our analysis were taken into account. The fraction of [O II] emitters decreases from {approx}60% at z {approx} 1.2 to {approx}30% at z {approx} 0.9 independent of galaxy environment. The decrease of the [O II] emitter fraction could be explained mainly by the rapid decrease of star formation activity in the universe from z {approx} 1.2 to z {approx} 0.9.

The strategic astrophysics missions of the coming decades will help answer the questions "How did our universe begin and evolve?" and "How did galaxies, stars, and planets come to be?" Enabling these missions requires advances in key technologies far beyond the current state of the art. NASA's Physics of the Cosmos (PCOS) and Cosmic Origins (COR) Program Offices manage technology maturation projects funded through the Strategic Astrophysics Technology (SAT) program to accomplish such advances. The PCOS and COR Program Offices, residing at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), were established in 2011, and serve as the implementation arm for the Astrophysics Division at NASA Headquarters. We present an overview of the Programs' technology development activities and the current technology investment portfolio of 23 technology advancements. We discuss the process for addressing community-provided technology gaps and Technology Management Board (TMB)-vetted prioritization and investment recommendations that inform the SAT program. The process improves the transparency and relevance of our technology investments, provides the community a voice in the process, and promotes targeted external technology investments by defining needs and identifying customers. The Programs' priorities are driven by strategic direction from the Astrophysics Division, which is informed by the National Research Council's (NRC) "New Worlds, New Horizons in Astronomy and Astrophysics" (NWNH) 2010 Decadal Survey report [1], the Astrophysics Implementation Plan (AIP) [2] as updated, and the Astrophysics Roadmap "Enduring Quests, Daring Visions" [3]. These priorities include technology development for missions to study dark energy, gravitational waves, X-ray and inflation probe science, and large far-infrared (IR) and ultraviolet (UV)/optical/IR telescopes to conduct imaging and spectroscopy studies. The SAT program is the Astrophysics Division's main investment method to mature technologies

The Dream of Scipio (b. 185 BCE) is the concluding excerpt of Cicero's dialogue in his De Republica ("On the Republic"), which has survived in the neo-Platonic commentaries on the text by Macrobius in the 4th century CE. A variation of its model Plato's Republic, the dialogue is set in 129 BCE. Parallels exist between Plato's closing with the myth of Er, recounting the structure of the cosmos and ordering of the planets and Cicero's cosmology updated by post-Hellenistic astronomical speculation. The Dream begins with his adoptive grandfather Cornelius Scipio Africanus appearing to his son Scipio in heaven as he looks down on Earth, a distant sphere amidst spheres of the universe. The deceased father presents the conditions of his legacy-to do upon Earth as his ancestors have done: "love justice and wisdom", and be devoted to your country, the highest form of virtue. Gazing on the stars-the Milky Way, home of the departed souls, Scipio realizes the relative insignificance of the Earth compared to the stars (analogy with the Roman Empire, a "pinpoint […] of this small Earth"). Africanus orders Scipio to look at the universe, the nine concentric spheres at the very center. Thus, fixed in place, the Earth does not move. Scipio then hears sounds-the music of the spheres in motion, its basis in mathematics and harmonic proportions. Comparisons between the works of Plato and Cicero are revealing. Both stress the relationship of city and state, and both share concern with justice and moral behavior. Whereas Plato focuses on the journey of the soul in the afterlife, Cicero's purpose is to show how public service, the importance of civic life, is a divinely sanctioned activity: "And remember that the most splendid deeds you can do are those which serve your country". The two major themes are the immortality of the soul and the relationship between human society and the divine order of the universe. Scipio must "contemplate the heavens in order to act rightly on Earth". The

On 2009 February 10, Iridium 33--an operational US communications satellite in low-Earth orbit--was struck and destroyed by Cosmos 2251--a long-defunct Russian communications satellite. This is the first time since the dawn of the Space Age that two satellites have collided in orbit. To better understand the circumstances of this event and the ramifications for avoiding similar events in the future, this paper provides a detailed analysis of the predictions leading up to the collision, using various data sources, and looks in detail at the collision, the evolution of the debris clouds, and the long-term implications for satellite operations. The only publicly available system available to satellite operators for screening for close approaches, SOCRATES, did predict this close approach, but it certainly wasn't the closest approach predicted for the week of February 10. In fact, at the time of the collision, SOCRATES ranked this close approach 152 of the 11,428 within 5 km of any payload. A detailed breakdown is provided to help understand the limitations of screening for close approaches using the two-line orbital element sets. Information is also provided specifically for the Iridium constellation to provide an understanding of how these limitations affect decision making for satellite operators. Post-event analysis using high-accuracy orbital data sources will be presented to show how that information might have been used to prevent this collision, had it been available and used. Analysis of the collision event, along with the distribution of the debris relative to the original orbits, will be presented to help develop an understanding of the geometry of the collision and the near-term evolution of the resulting debris clouds. Additional analysis will be presented to show the long-term evolution of the debris clouds, including orbital lifetimes, and estimate the increased risk for operations conducted by Iridium and other satellite operators in the low-Earth orbit

The COSMOS survey is a large and deep survey with multiwavelength observations of sources from X-rays to the UV, allowing an extensive study of their properties. The central 0.9 deg2 of the COSMOS field have been observed by Chandra with a sensitivity up to 1.9 × 10‑16 erg cm‑2 s‑1 in the full (0.5–10 keV) band. Photometric and spectroscopic identification of the Chandra-COSMOS (C-COSMOS) sources is available from several catalogs and campaigns. Despite the fact that the C-COSMOS galaxies have a reliable spectroscopic redshift in addition to a spectroscopic classification, the emission-line properties of this sample have not yet been measured. We present here the creation of an emission-line catalog of 453 narrow-line sources from the C-COSMOS spectroscopic sample. We have performed spectral fitting for the more common lines in galaxies ([O ii] λ3727, [Ne iii] λ3869, Hβ, [O iii] λλ4959, 5007, Hα, and [N ii] λλ6548, 6584). These data provide an optical classification for 151 (i.e., 33%) of the C-COSMOS narrow-line galaxies based on emission-line diagnostic diagrams.

Fly ashes generated by municipal solid waste incinerator (MSWI) are classified as hazardous waste and usually landfilled. For the sustainable reuse of these materials is necessary to reduce the resulting impact on human health and environment. The COSMOS-rice technology has been recently proposed for the treatment of fly ashes mixed with rice husk ash, to obtain a low-cost composite material with significant performances. Here, aquatic biotoxicity assays, including daphnidae and zebrafish embryo-based tests, were used to assess the biosafety efficacy of this technology. Exposure to lixiviated MSWI fly ash caused dose-dependent biotoxic effects on daphnidae and zebrafish embryos with alterations of embryonic development, teratogenous defects and apoptotic events. On the contrary, no biotoxic effects were observed in daphnidae and zebrafish embryos exposed to lixiviated COSMOS-rice material. Accordingly, whole-mount in situ hybridization analysis of the expression of various tissue-specific genes in zebrafish embryos provided genetic evidence about the ability of COSMOS-rice stabilization process to minimize the biotoxic effects of MSWI fly ash. These results demonstrate at the biological level that the newly developed COSMOS-rice technology is an efficient and cost-effective method to process MSWI fly ash, producing a biologically safe and reusable material. PMID:27149148

We present a group-galaxy cross-correlation analysis using a group catalog produced from the 16,500 spectra from the optical zCOSMOS galaxy survey. Our aim is to perform a consistency test in the redshift range 0.2 {<=} z {<=} 0.8 between the clustering strength of the groups and mass estimates that are based on the richness of the groups. We measure the linear bias of the groups by means of a group-galaxy cross-correlation analysis and convert it into mass using the bias-mass relation for a given cosmology, checking the systematic errors using realistic group and galaxy mock catalogs. The measured bias for the zCOSMOS groups increases with group richness as expected by the theory of cosmic structure formation and yields masses that are reasonably consistent with the masses estimated from the richness directly, considering the scatter that is obtained from the 24 mock catalogs. Some exceptions are the richest groups at high redshift (estimated to be more massive than 10{sup 13.5} M{sub Sun }), for which the measured bias is significantly larger than for any of the 24 mock catalogs (corresponding to a 3{sigma} effect), which is attributed to the extremely large structure that is present in the COSMOS field at z {approx} 0.7. Our results are in general agreement with previous studies that reported unusually strong clustering in the COSMOS field.

Argues that the contemporary language arts curriculum encompasses eight areas: literature, language, composition, speech and drama, critical thinking, technology, media literacy, and interdisciplinary studies. Offers a rationale for "cosmos" as a new metaphor for the language arts. Discusses the content of each of the eight curricular areas, and…

On August 3, 1977, the Soviet Union launched Cosmos 936, an unmanned spacecraft carrying biology and physics experiments from 9 countries, including both the Soviet Union and U.S. The launch marked the second time the Soviet Union has flown U.S. experiments aboard one of its spacecraft, the first being Cosmos 782 launched Nov. 25, 1975, which remained in orbit 19.5 days. Aboard Cosmos 936 were: 30 young male Wistar SPF rats, 20 of which was exposed to hypogravity during flight while the remainder were subjected to a l x g acceleration by continuous configuration; 2) experiments with plants and fruit flies; 3) radiation physics experiments; and 4) a heat convection experiment. After 18.5 days in orbit, the spacecraft landed in central Asia where a Soviet recovery team began experiment operations, including animal autopsies, within 4.5 hr of landing. Half of the animals were autopsied at the recovery site and the remainder returned to Moscow and allowed to readapt to terrestrial gravity for 25 days after which they, too, were autopsied. Specimens for U.S. were initially prepared at the recovery site or Soviet laboratories and transferred to U.S. laboratories for complete analyses. An overview of the mission focusing on preflight, on-orbit, and postflight activities pertinent to the seven U.S. experiments aboard Cosmos 936 will be presented.

On December 14, 1983, the U.S.S.R. launched Cosmos 1514, an unmanned spacecraft carrying biological and radiation physics experiments from nine countries, including five from the United States. This was the fourth flight with U.S. experiments aboard one of the Soviet unmanned spacecraft. The Cosmos 1514 flight was limited to five days duration because it was the first nonhuman primate flight. Cosmos 1514 marked a significant departure from earlier flights both in terms of Soviet goals and the degree of cooperation between the U.S.S.R. and the United States. This flight included more than 60 experiments on fish, crawfish eggs, plants and seeds, 10 Wistar pregnant rats, and 2 young adult rhesus monkeys as human surrogates. United States specialist participated in postflight data transfer and specimen transfer, and conducted rat neonatal behavioral studies. An overview of the mission is presented focusing on preflight, on-orbit, and postflight activites pertinent to the five U.S. experiments aboard Cosmos.

The mobile COsmic-ray Soil Moisture Observing System (COSMOS) rover may be useful for validating satellite-based estimates of near surface soil moisture, but the accuracy with which the rover can measure 0-5 cm soil moisture has not been previously determined. Our objectives were to calibrate and va...

Area-average soil moisture at the horizontal scale of hectometers and vertical scale of decimeters can be inferred from measurements of cosmic-ray fast neutron intensity in air above the ground surface. Hydrogen is very efficient at moderating (or removing) fast neutrons, and therefore emission of neutrons from soil and their concentration in the atmosphere are inversely correlated with the soil moisture content. Fast neutrons are measured using a gas-filled thermal neutron detector surrounded by plastic. Such detectors can be stationary or mobile. Stationary cosmic-ray detectors are being used to form the COsmic-ray Soil Moisture Observing System (COSMOS) that provides continental-scale soil moisture data in the USA. Mobile detector, called the COSMOS rover, can be used to map neutrons and infer soil moisture content over large areas or along long lines. Recent advances have been made on calibration of COSMOS probes, conversion of neutron intensity to soil moisture, and mobile measurements. Correction factors have been developed to account for variations in the incoming cosmic-ray intensity, soil mineral chemistry and atmospheric water content; additional corrections, for example for topography and surface water, need to be developed. With these corrections a "universal" calibration function can be developed. Mobile measurements using the car-mounted COSMOS rover have previously been shown to produce reasonable soil moisture fields. New simultaneous measurements using car-mounted and helicopter-mounted rovers gave comparable results, extending the rover capability to low-flying aircraft and permitting rapid measurements over difficult areas that are inaccessible to ground vehicles. Acknowledgements: The COSMOS project is supported by the National Science Foundation (USA).

We present photometric redshifts and spectral energy distribution (SED) classifications for a sample of 1542 optically identified sources detected with XMM in the COSMOS field. Our template fitting classifies 46 sources as stars and 464 as nonactive galaxies, while the remaining 1032 require templates with an active galactic nucleus (AGN) contribution. High accuracy in the derived photometric redshifts was accomplished as the result of (1) photometry in up to 30 bands with high-significance detections, (2) a new set of SED templates, including 18 hybrids covering the far-UV to mid-infrared, which have been constructed by the combination of AGNs and nonactive galaxies templates, and (3) multiepoch observations that have been used to correct for variability (most important for type 1 AGNs). The reliability of the photometric redshifts is evaluated using the subsample of 442 sources with measured spectroscopic redshifts. We achieved an accuracy of σ _{Δ z/(1+z_spec)} = 0.014 for i* AB < 22.5 (σ _{Δ z/(1+z_spec)} ˜ 0.015 for i* AB < 24.5). The high accuracies were accomplished for both type 2 (where the SED is often dominated by the host galaxy) and type 1 AGNs and QSOs out to z = 4.5. The number of outliers is a large improvement over previous photometric redshift estimates for X-ray-selected sources (4.0% and 4.8% outliers for i* AB < 22.5 and i* AB < 24.5, respectively). We show that the intermediate band photometry is vital to achieving accurate photometric redshifts for AGNs, whereas the broad SED coverage provided by mid-infrared (Spitzer/IRAC) bands is important to reduce the number of outliers for normal galaxies. Based on observations with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, obtained at the Space Telescope Science Institute, which is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc. (AURA) under NASA contract NAS 5-26555. Also based on observations made with the Spitzer Space Telescope, which is operated by the Jet Propulsion

Two types of strut-supported low energy electron-beam proximity projection lithography (LEEPL) masks which are grid-type mask and COSMOS-type mask, were investigated for Global image placement (IP). First, we evaluated the dynamic repeatability measurement performance for global IP, measuring a same mask 10 times on a 46 x 46 mm pattern area by using LEEPL electrostatic chuck (ESC). The measurement repeatability for grid type and COSMOS type were 5.1/7.8 nm and 4.4/5.8 nm in x/y directions respectively. And then global in-plane distortion (IPD) of COSMOS type masks with various stress and flatness were measured. The global IPD of a COSMOS-type mask with a low stress of 10 MPa and a flatness of 3.1 μm was 6.5/6.4 nm in x/y directions, which is negligible assuming the measurement repeatability. Finally the global IPs of the two-type masks were measured. The global IPs for the grid-type and COSMOS-type were 24.5/15.7 nm and 23.2/16.4 nm in x/y directions respectively. Thus we confirmed that the global IP obtained meet the required value of less than 30 nm.

We investigate the spectrum of cosmological perturbations in a bounce cosmos modeled by a scalar field coupled to the string tachyon field (CSTB cosmos). By explicit computation of its primordial spectral index we show the power spectrum of curvature perturbations, generated during the tachyon matter dominated contraction phase, to be nearly scale invariant. We propose a unified parameter space for a systematic study of inflationary and bounce cosmologies. The CSTB cosmos is dual-in Wands's sense-to slow-roll inflation as can be visualized with the aid of this parameter space. Guaranteed by the dynamical attractor behavior of the CSTB Cosmos, the scale invariance of its power spectrum is free of the fine-tuning problem, in contrast to the slow-roll inflation model.

We examine the relation between surface brightness, velocity dispersion, and size—the fundamental plane (FP)—for quiescent galaxies at intermediate redshifts in the COSMOS field. The COSMOS sample consists of ˜150 massive quiescent galaxies with an average velocity dispersion of σ ˜ 250 km s-1 and redshifts between 0.2 < z < 0.8. More than half of the galaxies in the sample are compact. The COSMOS galaxies exhibit a tight relation (˜0.1 dex scatter) between surface brightness, velocity dispersion, and size. At a fixed combination of velocity dispersion and size, the COSMOS galaxies are brighter than galaxies in the local universe. These surface brightness offsets are correlated with the rest-frame g - z color and Dn4000 index; bluer galaxies and those with smaller Dn4000 indices have larger offsets. Stellar population synthesis models indicate that the massive COSMOS galaxies are younger and therefore brighter than similarly massive quiescent galaxies in the local universe. Passive evolution alone brings the massive compact quiescent (MCQ) COSMOS galaxies onto the local FP at z = 0. Therefore, evolution in size or velocity dispersion for MCQ galaxies since z ˜ 1 is constrained by the small scatter observed in the FP. We conclude that MCQ galaxies at z ≲ 1 are not a special class of objects but rather the tail of the mass and size distribution of the normal quiescent galaxy population.

field with a total exposure of 5.6 Ms. XMM-Newton has covered the whole 2 deg2 COSMOS field with an exposure time of about 1.5 Ms . The technique for our cross-correlation analysis has been described in detail by C13. All the known instrumental and non-cosmic backgrounds are removed from the data and all discrete sources are excised using the same mask for both datasets. Then the exposure-corrected images are cross-correlated with each other. Compared to the AEGIS cross-correlation signal we expect a significantly better signal to noise ratio, which together with the larger area, will allow us to reach much larger angular scales, where different models can be constrained. The better photon statistics will also allow to separate the signal into at least four independent X-ray energy bands, thus yielding coarse spectral information allowing to discriminate between different models for the X-ray emitting sources. If the X-ray sources are High-Mass X-ray binaries with stellar-mass black holes descendent from massive Pop III stars at z>7, we would expect the X-ray emission to be only moderately absorbed. If on the other hand, the X-ray emission originates from direct collapse black holes with masses in the range 10^5-6 solar masses, we expect a significant Compton-thick absorption component, similar to the resolved X-ray background produced at lower redshifts. Finally, the new data on the CIB-CXB crosscorrelation will also strongly constrain the intrahalo light scenario proposed as an alternative interpretation. At any rate, these measurements allow diagnostics into the faintest discrete source populations right after they emerged from the dark ages or buried within halos. Until the next generation of telescopes, JWST, WFIRST, and EUCLID, the ground based 30m telescopes and later the ESA X-ray observatory Athena, this is one of the few avenues to constrain the formation and early evolution of stars and black holes in the Universe.

We select a sample of radio galaxies at high redshifts (z ≳ 1) in the COSMOS field by cross-matching optical and infrared (IR) images with the FIRST radio data. The aim of this study is to explore the high-z radio-loud (RL) active galactic nuclei (AGN) population at much lower luminosities than the classical samples of distant radio sources, which are similar to those of the local population of radio galaxies. Precisely, we extended a previous analysis focused on low-luminosity radio galaxies. The wide multiwavelength coverage provided by the COSMOS survey allows us to derive their spectral energy distributions (SEDs). We model them with our own developed technique 2SPD that includes old and young stellar populations and dust emission. When added to those previously selected, we obtain a sample of 74 RL AGN. The SED modeling returns several important quantities associated with the AGN and host properties. The resulting photometric redshifts range from z ~ 0.7 to 3. The sample mostly includes compact radio sources but also 21 FR IIs sources; the radio power distribution of the sample covers ~1031.5 - 1034.3 erg s-1 Hz-1, thus straddling the local FR I/FR II break. The inferred range of stellar mass of the hosts is ~1010 - 1011.5M⊙. The SEDs are dominated by the contribution from an old stellar population with an age of ~1 - 3 Gyr for most of the sources. However, UV and mid-IR (MIR) excesses are observed for half of the sample. The dust luminosities inferred from the MIR excesses are in the range, Ldust ~ 1043 - 1045.5 erg s-1, which are associated with temperatures approximately of 350-1200 K. Estimates of the UV component yield values of ~1041.5 - 1045.5 erg s-1 at 2000 Å. The UV emission is significantly correlated with both IR and radio luminosities; the former being the stronger link. However, the origin of UV and dust emission, whether it is produced by the AGN of by star formation, is still unclear. Our results show that this RL AGN population at high

We present a morphological study of 139 spectroscopically selected compact narrow emission line galaxies (CNELGs) from the COSMOS HST Treasury Survey, using a comparison sample of field galaxies of similar magnitude obtained from the COSMOS field. The CNELGs range in magnitude from 18.13 < V < 21.95 and in redshift from 0 < z < 0.9. Preliminary results indicate that, whereas statistically the CNELGs are clearly morphologically distinct from our comparison sample, at HST resolution they are also clearly not all - or even predominantly - "compact." This work was supported by an NSF REU Site grant to The City University of New York and American Museum of Natural History; an NSF STEAM grant to the College of Staten Island; the NASA New York Space Grant program; Barnard College; and the CUNY Macaulay Honors College.

We have used datamining techniques in the SuperCOSMOS Science Archive (http://surveys.roe.ac.uk/ssa) to obtain a large, well defined proper motion and magnitude selected sample of cool white dwarfs. Using accurate 5-colour photometry from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey DR1 and SuperCOSMOS Sky Survey photometry and astrometry, we demonstrate the power of reduced proper motion in obtaining a sample of >700 white dwarfs. We examine the characteristics of these objects in various two-colour diagrams in conjunction with new model atmosphere predictions recently computed in the SDSS photometric system. Ultimately, we intend to analyse these data with techniques similar to those already used to examine the subdwarf luminosity function (Digby et al. 2003). In this way, we aim to decompose the contribution of thin disk, thick disk and spheroid white dwarfs in the sample to enable computation of accurate luminosity functions for those respective populations.

The COSMOS program is a month-long, residential, summer program for talented high school students held at four University of California campuses (Davis, Irvine, Santa Cruz, and San Diego). Since the program's inception in 2000, we have offered the Astronomy & Astrophysics Cluster in the UCI COSMOS program. Our high school students take classes and laboratories in astronomy & astrophysics and complete a research project in small groups under the supervision of faculty and teaching assistants. Students take data for their research projects with telescopes at the UCI Observatory or use data that we already have obtained at other observatories in the course of our research. In this poster, we discuss the curriculum, the research projects, highlighting one of the newest labs we developed involving measuring dark matter with galaxy rotation curves, and discuss many of the lessons we have learn working with these talented students over the past 10 years.

To determine the possible biochemical effects of prolonged weightlessness on liver function, samples of liver from rats that had flown aboard Cosmos 1887 were analyzed for protein, glycogen, and lipids as well as the activities of a number of key enzymes involved in metabolism of these compounds and xenobiotics. Among the parameters measured, the major differences were elevations in the glycogen content and hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA (HMG-CoA) reductase activities for the rats flown on Cosmos 1887 and decreases in the amount of microsomal cytochrome P-450 and the activities of aniline hydroxylase and ethylmorphine N-demethylase, cytochrome P-450-dependent enzymes. These results support the earlier finding of differences in these parameters and suggest that altered hepatic function could be important during spaceflight and/or the postflight recovery period.

'Optically elusive AGN' are powerful X-ray sources (LHX > 1042 erg/s), but are not detected as AGN in the optical. Pons and Watson (2014) showed that in XMM these AGNs are a mix of Narrow Line Seyfert 1s, True Seyfert 2's and weak Seyfert 2s. The nature of these objects, coming from the cross-match of 3XMM with the SDSS-DR9 spectroscopic catalog, has been investigated through a detailed analysis of their IR/optical and X-ray properties. The fainter Chandra-COSMOS field should be rich in optically elusive AGNs as ¾ of the AGNs there are narrow-lined. There are ~850 Chandra-COSMOS galaxy spectra, mainly from five different telescopes (SDSS, Magellan, MMT, VLT and Keck). To find optically elusive objects, we investigate the optical classification using emission line diagnostic diagrams. For low redshift galaxies (z~<0.7) the standard BPT diagram ([OIII

Recently, a unifield geometrical approach to gravitational and strong interactions was proposed, based on the methods of General Relativity. According to it, hadrons can be regarded as black-hole type solutions of new field equations describing two tensorial metric-fields (the ordinary gravitational, and the strong one). By extending the Bekenstein-Hawking thermodynamics to those strong black-holes (SBH), it is shown: (1) that SBH thermodynamics seems to require a new expansion of our cosmos after its Big Crunch (this thermodynamical indication being rather unique, up to now, in showing that a recontraction of our cosmos has to be followed by a new creation); and (2) that a collapsing star with mass 2M sub(sun) less than = M less than 15M(sun), once overtaken the neutron-star phase, must re-explode reaching a diameter of at least a few light-days, thus failing to reach the black-hole state.

Recently, a unified geometrical approach to gravitational and strong interactions was proposed, based on the methods of general relativity. According to it, hadrons can be regarded as ``black-hole type'' solutions of new field equations describing two tensorial metric fields (the ordinary gravitational, and the ``strong'' one). By extending the Bekenstein-Hawking thermodynamics to those ``strong black holes'' (SBH), we show that (i) SBH thermodynamics seems to require a new expansion of our cosmos after its ``Big Crunch''. (This thermodynamical indication being rather unique, up to now, in showing that a recontraction of our cosmos has to be followed by a new ``creation'') (ii) a collapsing star with masses approximately in the range 3-5 solar masses, once reaching the neutron-star density, could re-explode tending to form a (radiating) object with a diameter of the order of 1 light-day: thus failing to create a gravitational black hole.

Using high-resolution HST/Wide Field Camera 3 F125W imaging from the CANDELS-COSMOS field, we report the structural and morphological properties of extremely red objects (EROs) at z ∼ 1. Based on the UVJ color criteria, we separate EROs into two types: old passive galaxies (OGs) and dusty star-forming galaxies (DGs). For a given stellar mass, we find that the mean size of OGs (DGs) is smaller by a factor of ∼ 2 (1.5) than that of present-day early-type (late-type) galaxies at a rest-frame optical wavelength. We derive the average effective radii of OGs and DGs, corresponding to 2.09 ± 1.13 kpc and 3.27 ± 1.14 kpc, respectively. Generally, the DGs are heterogeneous, with mixed features including bulges, disks and irregular structures, with relatively high M20, large size and low G. By contrast, OGs have elliptical-like compact morphologies with lower M20, smaller size and higher G, indicating a more concentrated and symmetric spatial extent of the stellar population distribution in OGs than DGs. These findings imply that OGs and DGs have different evolutionary processes, and that the minor merger scenario is the most likely mechanism for the structural properties of OGs. However, the size evolution of DGs is possibly due to the secular evolution of galaxies. Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China.

Context: For more than two decades we have known that galaxy morphological segregation is present in the Local Universe. It is important to see how this relation evolves with cosmic time. Aims: To investigate how galaxy assembly took place with cosmic time, we explore the evolution of the morphology-density relation up to redshift z ~ 1 using about 10 000 galaxies drawn from the zCOSMOS Galaxy Redshift Survey. Taking advantage of accurate HST/ACS morphologies from the COSMOS survey, of the well-characterised zCOSMOS 3D environment, and of a large sample of galaxies with spectroscopic redshift, we want to study here the evolution of the morphology-density relation up to z ~ 1 and its dependence on galaxy luminosity and stellar mass. The multi-wavelength coverage of the field also allows a first study of the galaxy morphological segregation dependence on colour. We further attempt to disentangle between processes that occurred early in the history of the Universe or late in the life of galaxies. Methods: The zCOSMOS field benefits of high-resolution imaging in the F814W filter from the Advanced Camera for Survey (ACS). We use standard morphology classifiers, optimised for being robust against band-shifting and surface brightness dimming, and a new, objective, and automated method to convert morphological parameters into early, spiral, and irregular types. We use about 10 000 galaxies down to I_AB = 22.5 with a spectroscopic sampling rate of 33% to characterise the environment of galaxies up to z ~ 1 from the 100 kpc scales of galaxy groups up to the 100 Mpc scales of the cosmic web. The evolution of the morphology-density relation in different environments is then studied for luminosity and stellar-mass selected, volume-limited samples of galaxies. The trends are described and related to the various physical processes that could play a relevant role in the build-up of the morphology-density relation. Results: We confirm that the morphological segregation is present

A considerable contribution to the investigation on biological importance of weightlessness was made by the experiments with animals in the artificial Earth satelites (AES) of "Cosmos" type. Cell cultures can serve as an ideal model to get a direct cell response to the effect of external factors. For the experiment in the AES "Cosmos-782", two thoroughly examined cell strains (L and 237) were chosen, which differed in a number of parameters (for example, duration of their mitotic cycles). Density of cell seeding and temperature of their cultivation in the laboratory experiment were calculated in such a way that the whole cycle of the culture development should take place under the conditions of weightlessness: the beginning of lag-phase--before launching and the stationary phase--after landing. The weightlessness was not shown to result in any genetical shifts revealed at chromosomal level. When cultivated after the flight, the cells do not change their mitotic cycle parameters, mitotic course and structural organization. The data obtained in the experiments with AES "Cosmos-368" and "Cosmos-782" (increase of mitotic index, some forms of mitotic pathology during the first terms of cultivation after the flight and enlargement of cellular nuclei) demonstrate the changes in the cell population which have formed under the conditions of weightlessness. Similar changes are observed while the cells propagate in the laboratory conditions. Indirect data on an earlier cell culture aging during the flight do not exclued the possibility that under weightlessness the rate of cell propagation could differ from that under gravitation. PMID:563224

Detailed NORAD data have revealed updated orbital elements for the Ariane third-stage rocket body that underwent breakup on November 13, 1986, as well as for the Cosmos 1680 rocket body. Applying the maximum expected error due to the extrapolation of orbital elements to the date of the possible collision between the two bodies shows the smallest possible distance between bodies to have been 380 km, thereby precluding collision.

The Physics of the Cosmos Program Analysis Group (PhysPAG) serves as a forum for soliciting and coordinating input and analysis from the scientific community in support of the PCOS program objectives. I will outline the activities of the PhysPAG over the past year, since the last meeting during the AAS meeting in National Harbor, and mention the activities of the PhysPAG related Scientific Interest Groups.

The zCOSMOS-SINFONI project is aimed at studying the physical and kinematical properties of a sample of massive z {approx} 1.4-2.5 star-forming galaxies, through SINFONI near-infrared integral field spectroscopy (IFS), combined with the multiwavelength information from the zCOSMOS (COSMOS) survey. The project is based on one hour of natural-seeing observations per target, and adaptive optics (AO) follow-up for a major part of the sample, which includes 30 galaxies selected from the zCOSMOS/VIMOS spectroscopic survey. This first paper presents the sample selection, and the global physical characterization of the target galaxies from multicolor photometry, i.e., star formation rate (SFR), stellar mass, age, etc. The H{alpha} integrated properties, such as, flux, velocity dispersion, and size, are derived from the natural-seeing observations, while the follow-up AO observations will be presented in the next paper of this series. Our sample appears to be well representative of star-forming galaxies at z {approx} 2, covering a wide range in mass and SFR. The H{alpha} integrated properties of the 25 H{alpha} detected galaxies are similar to those of other IFS samples at the same redshifts. Good agreement is found among the SFRs derived from H{alpha} luminosity and other diagnostic methods, provided the extinction affecting the H{alpha} luminosity is about twice that affecting the continuum. A preliminary kinematic analysis, based on the maximum observed velocity difference across the source and on the integrated velocity dispersion, indicates that the sample splits nearly 50-50 into rotation-dominated and velocity-dispersion-dominated galaxies, in good agreement with previous surveys.

The indicators of adrenomedullary activity (catecholamine content (CA) and the activity of the catecholamine-synthesizing enzymes tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) and dopamine-β-hydroxylase (DBH)) were measured in the adrenal glands of rats living in a state of weightlessness for 18.5-19.5 days on board the biosatellites COSMOS 936 and COSMOS 1129. None of these indicators was significantly changed by space flight, neither in the group living in a state of weightlessness nor in the group living in a centrifuge on board the spacecraft and exposed to artificial gravity of 1 g (COSMOS 936). Animals exposed after space flight to repeated immobilization stress on Earth showed a significant decrease of adrenal adrenaline and an appreciable increase in adrenal TH activity compared to stressed animals which were not in space. These results suggest that a prolonged state of weightlessness during space flight does not by itself represent an intensive stressful stimulus for the adrenomedullary system but potentiates the response of cosmonauts to stress after return to Earth.

Preliminary studies in rats (COSMOS 1887) suggested that levels of posterior pituitary hormones were reduced by exposure to spaceflight. To confirm these preliminary findings, pituitary tissue from rats flown for 14 days on Cosmos 2044 is obtained. Posterior pituitary content of oxytocin (OT) and vasopressin (VP) were measured in these tissues as well as those from ground-based controls. The synchronous control group had feeding and lighting schedules synchronized to those in the spacecraft and were maintained in flight-type cages. Another group was housed in vivarium cages; a third group was tail suspended (T), a method used to simulate microgravity. Flight rats showed an average reduction of 27 in pituitary OT and VP compared with the three control groups. When hormone content was expressed in terms of pituitary protein (microg hormone/mg protein), the average decrease in OT and VP for the flight animals ranged from 20 to 33 percent compared with the various control groups. Reduced levels of pituitary OT and VP were similar to preliminary measurements from the Cosmos 1887 mission and appear to result from exposure to spaceflight. These data suggest that changes in the rate of hormone secretion or synthesis may have occurred during exposure to microgravity.

COSMOS J100043.15+020637.2 is a merger remnant at z = 0.36 with two optical nuclei, NW and SE, offset by 500 mas (2.5 kpc). Prior studies suggest two competing scenarios for these nuclei: (1) SE is an active galactic nucleus (AGN) lost from NW due to a gravitational-wave recoil. (2) NW and SE each contain an AGN, signaling a gravitational-slingshot recoil or inspiralling AGNs. We present new images from the Very Large Array (VLA) at a frequency ν = 9.0 GHz and a FWHM resolution θ = 320 mas (1.6 kpc), and the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) at ν = 1.52 GHz and θ = 15 mas (75 pc). The VLA imaging is sensitive to emission driven by AGNs and/or star formation, while the VLBA imaging is sensitive only to AGN-driven emission. No radio emission is detected at these frequencies. Folding in prior results, we find: (a) The properties of SE and its adjacent X-ray feature resemble those of the Type 1 AGN in NGC 4151, albeit with a much higher narrow emission-line luminosity. (b) The properties of NW are consistent with it hosting a Compton-thick AGN that warms ambient dust, photoionizes narrow emission-line gas, and is free-free absorbed by that gas. Finding (a) is consistent with scenarios (a) and (b). Finding (b) weakens the case for scenario (a) and strengthens the case for scenario (b). Follow-up observations are suggested.

"Raritäten-und Wunderkammern" of the Baroque period were a microscopic image of the macroscopic world, in which astronomical instruments, orreries and celestial globes played an important role. The Gottorf globe in the ducal castle in Schleswig (1664) and, much later, the Atwood sphere in Chicago (1913) allowed demonstration of star…

The beginning of the year 2013 marks the sixth anniversary of the destruction of the Fengyun-1C (FY-1C) weather satellite as the result of an anti-satellite test conducted by China in January 2007 and the fourth anniversary of the accidental collision between Cosmos 2251 and the operational Iridium 33 in February 2009. These two events represent the worst satellite breakups in history. A total of 5579 fragments have been cataloged by the U.S. Space Surveillance Network (SSN), and almost 5000 of them were still in orbit in January 2013. In addition to these cataloged objects, hundreds of thousands (or more) of fragments down to the millimeter size regime were also generated during the breakups. These fragments are too small to be tracked by the SSN, but are large enough to be a safety concern for human space activities and robotic missions in low Earth orbit (LEO, the region below 2000 km altitude). Like their cataloged siblings, many of them remain in orbit today. These two breakup events dramatically changed the landscape of the orbital debris environment in LEO. The spatial density of the cataloged population in January 2013 is shown as the top blue curve. The combined FY-1C, Iridium 33, and Cosmos 2251 fragments (black curve) account for about 50 percent of the cataloged population below an altitude of 1000 km. They are also responsible for the concentrations at 770 km and 850 km, altitudes at which the collisions occurred. The effects of the FY-1C, Iridium 33, and Cosmos 2251 fragments will continue to be felt for decades to come. For example, approximately half of the generated FY-1C fragments will remain in orbit 20 years from now. In general, the Iridium 33 and Cosmos 2251 fragments will decay faster than the FY-1C fragments because of their lower altitudes. Of the Iridium 33 and Cosmos 2251 fragments, the former have much shorter orbital lifetimes than the latter, because lightweight composite materials were heavily used in the construction of the Iridium

Aims: We present a study of a large filamentary structure at z ~ 0.73 in the field of the COSMOS survey, the so-called COSMOS Wall. This structure encompasses a comprehensive range of environments from a dense cluster and a number of galaxy groups to filaments, less dense regions, and adjacent voids. It thus provides a valuable laboratory for the accurate mapping of environmental effects on galaxy evolution at a look-back time of ~6.5 Gyr, when the Universe was roughly half its present age. Methods: We performed deep spectroscopic observations with VIMOS at VLT of a K-band selected sample of galaxies in this complex structure, building a sample of galaxies complete in galaxy stellar mass down to a lower limit of log(ℳ∗/ℳ⊙) ~ 9.8, which is significantly deeper than previously available data. Thanks to its location within the COSMOS survey, each galaxy benefits from a wealth of ancillary information: HST-ACS data with I-band exposures down to IAB ~ 28 complemented by extensive multiwavelength ground- and space-based observations spanning the entire electromagnetic spectrum. Results: In this paper we detail the survey strategy and weighting scheme adopted to account for the biases introduced by the photometric preselection of our targets. We present our galaxy stellar mass and rest-frame magnitudes estimates together with a group catalog obtained with our new data and their member galaxies color/mass distribution. Conclusions: Owing to our new sample we can perform a detailed, high definition mapping of the complex COSMOS Wall structure. The sharp environmental information, coupled with high quality spectroscopic information and rich ancillary data available in the COSMOS field, enables a detailed study of galaxy properties as a function of local environment in a redshift slice where environmental effects are important, and in a stellar mass range where mass and environment driven effects are both at work. Based on observations collected at the European

We report the discovery of a massive ultracompact quiescent galaxy that has been strongly lensed into multiple images by a foreground galaxy at z 0.960. This system was serendipitously discovered as a set of extremely K{sub s} -bright high-redshift galaxies with red J - K{sub s} colors using new data from the UltraVISTA YJHK{sub s} near-infrared survey. The system was also previously identified as an optically faint lens/source system using the COSMOS Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) imaging by Faure et al. Photometric redshifts for the three brightest images of the source galaxy determined from 27-band photometry place the source at z = 2.4 {+-} 0.1. We provide an updated lens model for the system that is a good fit to the positions and morphologies of the galaxies in the ACS image. The lens model implies that the magnification of the three brightest images is a factor of 4-5. We use the lens model, combined with the K{sub s} -band image, to constrain the size and Sersic profile of the galaxy. The best-fit model is an ultracompact galaxy (R{sub e} = 0.64{sup +0.08}{sub -0.18} kpc, lensing-corrected), with a Sersic profile that is intermediate between a disk and a bulge profile (n 2.2{sup +2.3}{sub -{sub 0.9}}), albeit with considerable uncertainties on the Sersic profile. We present aperture photometry for the source galaxy images that have been corrected for flux contamination from the central lens. The best-fit stellar population model is a massive galaxy (log(M{sub star}/M{sub Sun }) = 10.8{sup +0.1}{sub -0.1}, lensing-corrected) with an age of 1.0{sup +1.0}{sub -0.4} Gyr, moderate dust extinction (A{sub v} = 0.8{sup +0.5}{sub -0.6}), and a low specific star formation rate (log(SSFR)

NASA Science Mission Directorate missions and research programs share the wonders of the universe with students, educators, and the public through a wide array of award-winning education and public outreach programs. During 2009, these programs are providing a variety of professional development experiences for educators, observing opportunities, and community-based events to advance the U.S. goal for the International Year of Astronomy (IYA). This presentation highlights examples of NASA-supported IYA activities that use imagery, amateur astronomer networks, and online telescopes to empower learners of all ages to discover the universe for themselves. To help "kick-off” the year, NASA's Great Observatories, Hubble, Chandra, and Spitzer, are providing large image prints to science centers, museums, and planetaria nationwide to illustrate the contributions of multi-wavelength observations to astronomy. The Task Group for the "From Earth to the Universe” Global Cornerstone Project has assembled a collection of more than 90 high-resolution images that individual communities are using to create their own image exhibitions in "non-traditional” settings. The "Visions of the Universe: Four Centuries of Discovery” traveling exhibit will use a spectacular arrangement of historic sketches and contemporary images to show library audiences how our view of the universe has changed since the time of Galileo. NASA's IYA Web site will contain a collection of articles on hot topics in space science - one for each month of 2009 - and a celestial object that can be observed through the unaided eye, binoculars, or a small telescope. The Night Sky Network provides a Cosmic Calendar of related observing opportunities and educational activities offered through amateur astronomy clubs. Through the MicroObservatory online telescope network, users can be Galileo for a night to celebrate IYA, and use a telescope to observe the same objects as Galileo.

We present a catalog covering 1.62 deg{sup 2} of the COSMOS/UltraVISTA field with point-spread function (PSF) matched photometry in 30 photometric bands. The catalog covers the wavelength range 0.15-24 {mu}m including the available GALEX, Subaru, Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope, VISTA, and Spitzer data. Catalog sources have been selected from the DR1 UltraVISTA K{sub s} band imaging that reaches a depth of K {sub s,tot} = 23.4 AB (90% completeness). The PSF-matched catalog is generated using position-dependent PSFs ensuring accurate colors across the entire field. Also included is a catalog of photometric redshifts (z {sub phot}) for all galaxies computed with the EAZY code. Comparison with spectroscopy from the zCOSMOS 10k bright sample shows that up to z {approx} 1.5 the z {sub phot} are accurate to {Delta}z/(1 + z) = 0.013, with a catastrophic outlier fraction of only 1.6%. The z {sub phot} also show good agreement with the z {sub phot} from the NEWFIRM Medium Band Survey out to z {approx} 3. A catalog of stellar masses and stellar population parameters for galaxies determined using the FAST spectral energy distribution fitting code is provided for all galaxies. Also included are rest-frame U - V and V - J colors, L {sub 2800} and L {sub IR}. The UVJ color-color diagram confirms that the galaxy bi-modality is well-established out to z {approx} 2. Star-forming galaxies also obey a star-forming 'main sequence' out to z {approx} 2.5, and this sequence evolves in a manner consistent with previous measurements. The COSMOS/UltraVISTA K{sub s} -selected catalog covers a unique parameter space in both depth, area, and multi-wavelength coverage and promises to be a useful tool for studying the growth of the galaxy population out to z {approx} 3-4.

The COsmic-ray Soil Moisture Observing System (COSMOS) is a new and innovative method for estimating surface and near-surface soil moisture at large (∼700 m) scales. This system accounts for liquid water within its measurement volume. Many of the sites used in the early validation of the system had low and stable vegetation water content. It is necessary to perform validation of COSMOS in a landscape with a significant change in vegetation water content to estimate its impact on the COSMOS estimate, and potentially, correct the estimate to account for the dynamic vegetation cover. A COSMOS station was installed in Beltsville, MD in the spring of 2012, within the domain of a long-term experimental station on USDA property. This station has a large array of soil moisture sensors in profile across the field, which is approximately 700 m in diameter. Frequent estimates of Leaf Area Index (LAI) were made throughout the 2012 and 2013 growing seasons (May through September). COSMOS readings, with a simple linear adjustment, were able to produce estimates of area-weighted averages of the existing in situ network with root-mean-squared-errors (RMSE) of soil-water content well below 0.04 m3/m3 and with additional modeling to account for Leaf Area Index (LAI) values, RMSE values less than 0.03 m3/m3 were achieved.

Looking like a colorful holiday card, this image from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope reveals a vibrant green and red nebula far from Earth, where nature seems to have put on the traditional colors of the season. These colors, produced by the light emitted by oxygen and hydrogen, help astronomers investigate the star-forming processes in nebulas such as NGC 2080. NGC 2080, nicknamed 'The Ghost Head Nebula,' is one of a chain of star-forming regions lying south of the 30 Doradus nebula in the Large Magellanic Cloud that have attracted special attention. These regions have been studied in detail with Hubble and have long been identified as unique star-forming sites. 30 Doradus is the largest star-forming complex in the whole local group of galaxies. The light from the nebula captured in this image is emitted by two elements, hydrogen and oxygen. The red and the blue light are from regions of hydrogen gas heated by nearby stars. The green light on the left comes from glowing oxygen. The energy to illuminate the green light is supplied by a powerful stellar wind (a stream of high-speed particles) coming from a massive star just outside the image. The white region in the center is a combination of all three emissions and indicates a core of hot, massive stars in this star-formation region. The intense emission from these stars has carved a bowl-shaped cavity in the surrounding gas. In the white region, the two bright areas (the 'eyes of the ghost') - named A1 (left) and A2 (right) - are very hot, glowing 'blobs' of hydrogen and oxygen. The bubble in A1 is produced by the hot, intense radiation and powerful stellar wind from a single massive star. A2 has a more complex appearance due to the presence of more dust, and it contains several hidden, massive stars. The massive stars in A1 and A2 must have formed within the last 10,000 years, since their natal gas shrouds are not yet disrupted by the powerful radiation of the newly born stars. The research team noted that Hubble

"Raritäten- und Wunderkammern" of the Baroque period were a microscopic image of the macroscopic world, in which astronomical instruments, orreries and celestial globes played an important role. The Gottorf globe in the ducal castle in Schleswig (1664) and, much later, the Atwood sphere in Chicago (1913) allowed demonstration of star rising and setting for several people sitting inside. An improved version of this idea, a more sophisticated device, was the projection planetarium, invented by Zeiss of Jena and inaugurated in 1925 in Munich. The "Urania" had already opened in Berlin in 1888, showing the real sky from a public observatory, as well as giving theatrical performances about the origin and evolution of the universe. And, since 1909, visitors to Berlin's Archenhold Observatory have enjoyed stargazing with its impressive "20-m-long" refractor. All these models and instruments were successfully used for the public understanding of science and astronomy, and always created a strong attraction.

The COSMOS -PEER Lifelines Project 2L02 completed a Pilot Geotechnical Virtual Data Center (GVDC) system capable of both archiving geotechnical data and of disseminating data from multiple linked geotechnical databases. The Pilot GVDC system links geotechnical databases of four organizations: the California Geological Survey, Caltrans, PG&E, and the U. S. Geological Survey The System was presented and reviewed in the COSMOS-PEER Lifelines workshop on June 21 - 23, 2004, which was co-sponsored by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and included participation by the United Kingdom Highways Agency (UKHA) , the Association of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Specialists in the United Kingdom (AGS), the United States Army Corp of Engineers (USACOE), Caltrans, United States Geological Survey (USGS), California Geological Survey (CGS), a number of state Departments of Transportation (DOTs), county building code officials, and representatives of academic institutions and private sector geotechnical companies. As of February 2005 COSMOS-PEER Lifelines Project 2L03 is currently funded to accomplish the following tasks: 1) expand the Pilot GVDC Geotechnical Data Dictionary and XML Schema to include data definitions and structures to describe in-situ measurements such as shear wave velocity profiles, and additional laboratory geotechnical test types; 2) participate in an international cooperative working group developing a single geotechnical data exchange standard that has broad international acceptance; and 3) upgrade the GVDC system to support corresponding exchange standard data dictionary and schema improvements. The new geophysical data structures being developed will include PS-logs, downhole geophysical logs, cross-hole velocity data, and velocity profiles derived using surface waves. A COSMOS-PEER Lifelines Geophysical Data Dictionary Working Committee constituted of experts in the development of data dictionary standards and experts in the specific data to be

During the flight of the Cosmos-2044 biosatellite, joint U.S.S.R.-U.S.A. investigations of different characteristics of cosmic radiation (CR) in the near-Earth environment were carried out. The U.S. dielectric track detectors CR-39 and Soviet BYa- and BR-type nuclear photo-emulsions were used as detectors. The present work shows some results of experimental measurements of linear energy transfer (LET) spectra of CR particles obtained with the use of these detectors, which were placed both inside and outside the satellite. The LET spectra measurements with plastic detectors is composed of two parts: the measurement of galactic cosmos rays (GCR) particles, and of short-range particles. The contributions of these components to the total LET distribution at various thicknesses of the shielding were analyzed and the results of these studies are presented. Calculated LET spectra in the Cosmos-2044 orbit were compared with experimental data. On the basis of experimental and calculated values of the LET spectra, absorbed and equivalent CR doses were calculated. In the shielding range of 1-1.5 g cm(exp -2), outside the spacecraft, the photo-emulsions yielded 10.3 mrad d(exp -1) and 13.4 mrem d(exp -1) (LET greater than or equal to 40 MeV cm(exp -1)). Inside the spacecraft (greater than or equal to 10 g cm(exp -2) the photo-emulsions yielded 8.9 mrad d(exp -1) and 14.5 mrem d(exp -1).

The Cosmos 2044 biosatellite mission offered the opportunity for radiation measurements under conditions which are seldom available (an inclination of 82.3 deg and attitude of 294 x 216 km). Measurements were made on the outside of the spacecraft under near-zero shielding conditions. Also, this mission was the first in which active temperature recorders (the ATR-4) were flown to record the temperature profiles of detector stacks. Measurements made on this mission provide a comparison and test for modeling of depth doses and LET spectra for orbital parameters previously unavailable. Tissue absorbed doses from 3480 rad (252 rad/d) down to 0.115 rad (8.33 mrad/d) were measured at different depths (0.0146 and 3.20 g/sq cm, respectively) with averaged TLD readings. The LET spectra yielded maximum and minimum values of integral flux of 27.3 x 10(exp -4) and 3.05 x 10(exp -4)/sq cm/s/sr, of dose rate of 7.01 and 1.20 mrad/d, and of dose equivalent rate of 53.8 and 11.6 mrem/d, for LET(sub infinity)-H2O is greater than or equal to 4 keV/micron. Neutron measurements yielded 0.018 mrem/d in the thermal region, 0.25 mrem/d in the resonance region and 3.3 mrem/d in the high energy region. The TLD depth dose and LET spectra were compared with calculations from the modeling codes. The agreement is good but some further refinements are in order. In comparing measurements on Cosmos 2044 with those from previous Cosmos missions (orbital inclinations of 62.8 deg) there is a greater spread (maximum to minimum) in depth doses and an increased contribution from GCRs, and higher LET particles, in the heavy particle fluxes.

In this paper, we release accurate photometric redshifts for 1692 counterparts to Chandra sources in the central square degree of the Cosmic Evolution Survey (COSMOS) field. The availability of a large training set of spectroscopic redshifts that extends to faint magnitudes enabled photometric redshifts comparable to the highest quality results presently available for normal galaxies. We demonstrate that morphologically extended, faint X-ray sources without optical variability are more accurately described by a library of normal galaxies (corrected for emission lines) than by active galactic nucleus (AGN) dominated templates, even if these sources have AGN-like X-ray luminosities. Preselecting the library on the bases of the source properties allowed us to reach an accuracy {sigma}{sub {Delta}z/(1+z{sub s{sub p{sub e{sub c)}}}}}{approx}0.015 with a fraction of outliers of 5.8% for the entire Chandra-COSMOS sample. In addition, we release revised photometric redshifts for the 1735 optical counterparts of the XMM-detected sources over the entire 2 deg{sup 2} of COSMOS. For 248 sources, our updated photometric redshift differs from the previous release by {Delta}z > 0.2. These changes are predominantly due to the inclusion of newly available deep H-band photometry (H{sub AB} = 24 mag). We illustrate once again the importance of a spectroscopic training sample and how an assumption about the nature of a source together, with the number and the depth of the available bands, influences the accuracy of the photometric redshifts determined for AGN. These considerations should be kept in mind when defining the observational strategies of upcoming large surveys targeting AGNs, such as eROSITA at X-ray energies and the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder Evolutionary Map of the Universe in the radio band.

The activity of the catecholaminergic system was measured in the hypothalamus of rats which had experienced an 18.5-19.5-day-long stay in the state of weightlessness during space flights on board Soviet biosatellites of the type Cosmos. In the first two experiments, Cosmos 782 and 936, the concentration of norepinephrine and the activities of synthesizing enzymes tyrosine hydroxylase and dopamine-β-hydroxylase and of the degrading enzyme monoamine oxidase were measured in the total hypothalamus. None of the given parameters was changed after space flight. In the light of the changes of these parameters recorded after exposure to acute stress on Earth, this finding indicates that long-term state of weightlessness does not represent an intensive stressogenic stimulus for the system studied. In the space experiment Cosmos 1129, the concentration of norepinephrine, epinephrine, and dopamine was studied in isolated nuclei of the hypothalamus of rats within 6-10 hr following return from space. Norepinephrine was found to be significantly reduced in the arcuate nucleus, median eminence and periventricular nucleus, epinephrine in the median eminence, periventricular and suprachiasmatic nuclei, whereas dopamine was not significantly changed after space flight. The decreased catecholamine levels found in some hypothalamic nuclei of rats which had undergone space flight indicate that no chronic intensive stressor could have acted during the flight, otherwise the catecholamine concentration would have been increased in the nuclei. The decreased levels must have been induced by the effect of a stressogenic factor acting for a short time only, and that either during the landing maneuver or immediately after landing. Thus long-term exposure of the organism to the state of weightlessness does not represent a stressogenic stimulus for the catecholaminergic system in the hypothalamus, which is one of the regulators of the activation of neuroendocrine reactions under stress.

We present the host galaxy properties of a large sample of ~ 4000 X-ray selected Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) in the Chandra COSMOS Legacy Survey to investigate the connection between BH accretion and host galaxy. The COSMOS Legacy survey reaching X-ray fluxes of 2x10-16 (cgs) in the 0.5-2 keV band, bridges the gap between large area shallow surveys and pencil beamed one. Making use of the existing multi-wavelength photometric data available for 96.6% of the sources, COSMOS Legacy survey provides a uniquely large sample to derive host galaxy properties for both obscured and unobscured sources. We perform a multi-component modeling from far-infrared (500 μm) when available to UV (1500 Å) using a 3-component fitting (nuclear hot dust, galaxy and starburst components) for obscured AGN and a 4-component fitting (nuclear hot dust, AGN big blue bump, galaxy, and starburst components) for unobscured AGN. Galaxy templates are from the stellar population synthesis models of Bruzual & Charlot (2003), nuclear hot dust templates are taken from Silva et al. (2004), and AGN big blue bump templates are from Richards et al. (2006). We use the column density information measured in the X-ray to constrain the AGN in the infrared band when available. Through detailed analysis of the broad-band spectral energy distribution, we derive the stellar masses and the star formation rates of the host galaxy as well as the nuclear and galaxy contribution at each frequency. We study the dependence of host galaxy properties on redshifts, luminosities, and black hole masses to infer the growth history of galaxies and black holes and we compare with a sample of inactive galaxies.

Gamma-ray Bursts (GRBs) represent the sole class of catastrophic phenomena seen over almost the entire history of the Universe. Their extreme luminosities in high energy gamma-ray radiation make them readily detectable, even with relatively small satellite-based detectors, out to the earliest cosmic epochs. Moreover, the brilliance of their fading afterglow light, routinely observed in X-ray, optical, near-infrared, and radio wavelengths, allows them to be exploited -- for hours, days, or weeks -- as cosmic lighthouses, probing the conditions of gas and dust along the line of sight, through their host galaxies and the cosmos at large. Since the November 2004 launch of Swift, this GRB-focused NASA mission has discovered more than 500 GRBs, in almost all cases reporting the burst coordinates to ground-based observers within seconds of the event. The availability of prompt burst positions from Swift, combined with promptly-reported flux measurements from instruments on Swift and an array of ground-based robotic telescopes, have enabled targeted spectroscopic campaigns that have gathered detailed observations of the young, bright afterglows of hundreds of these events. This thesis reports the results of my own efforts over the past 5 years, analyzing imaging and spectroscopic observations of Swift-detected GRBs as triggered according to my own requests, or as gathered from public data archives. In Chapter 2, I discuss our follow-up campaign for GRB090429B, one of our best "extreme redshift" (z > 8) candidates. This burst followed closely on the spectroscopicallyconfirmed z = 8.2 GRB090423, and our multiwavelength observations and SED modeling demonstrate the value and limitation of such studies, in cases where a spectroscopic redshift cannot be gathered in a timely fashion. I also address the importance of such extreme-redshift events from a cosmological perspective. In Chapter 3, I use high-resolution GRB afterglow spectra to study the properties of intervening

Tissues of male, specific pathogen-free Wistar rats flown on the Cosmos 1887 biosatellite are studied. First the mission is described, and then analytical methods are outlined. It is noted that flight rats grew more slowly and had larger adrenal glands than earth gravity controls. Analysis of plasma reveals increased concentrations of hepatic alkaline phosphatase, glucose, urea nitrogen, and creatinine in flight rats. In contrast, electrolytes, total protein, albumin, corticosteron, prolactin, and immunoreactive growth hormone levels are unchanged. However, testosterone concentration is marginally decreased after flight and thyroid hormone levels are suggestive of reduced thyroid function.

Many radiation detectors are first developed for homeland security or industrial applications. Scientists, however, are continuously realizing new roles that these detectors can play in high-energy physics and astrophysics experiments. On Wednesday, December 3, join presenter Aleksey Bolotnikov, a physicist in the Nonproliferation and National Security Department (NNSD) and a co-inventor of the cadmium-zinc-telluride Frisch-ring (CdZnTe) detector, for the 443rd Brookhaven Lecture, entitled Gamma-Ray Detectors: From Homeland Security to the Cosmos. In his lecture, Bolotnikov will highlight two primary radiation-detector technologies: CdZnTe detectors and fluid-Xeon (Xe) detectors.

Plasmas samples from rats flown aboard Cosmos 2044 were analyzed for the levels of key metabolites, electrolytes, enzymes, and hormones. The major differences between the flight group and the synchronous control were elevations in glucose, cholesterol, phosphate, creatinine, blood urea nitrogen, lactate dehydrogenase, and aspartate aminotransferase and decreased levels of thyroxine. Most of these differences were not mimicked by tail suspension of ground-based rats; however, both flight and suspended rats exhibited inhibited testosterone secretion. Corticosterone, immunoreactive growth hormone, and prolactin showed inconsistent differences from the various control groups, suggesting that the levels of these hormones were not due to actual or simulated microgravity.

The collision of Iridium 33 and Cosmos 2251 was the most severe accidental fragmentation on record. More than 1800 debris approx. 10 cm and larger were produced. If solar activity returns to normal, half of the tracked debris will reenter within five years. Less than 60 cataloged debris had reentered by 1 October 2009. Some debris from both satellites will remain in orbit through the end of the century. The collision rate of one every five years will increase without future removal of large derelict spacecraft and launch vehicle orbital stages.

Experiments included: 30 young male Wistar SPF rats used for wide range physiological studies Kosmos Satellites experiments with plants, fungi, insects, and mammalian tissue cultures; radiation physics experiments; a heat convection study; a rat embryology experiment in which an attempt was made to breed 2 male and 5 female rats during the flight; and fertile quail eggs used to determine the effects of spaceflight on avian embryogenesis. Specimens for US experiments were initially prepared at the recovery site or in Moscow and transferred to US laboratories for complete analyses. An overview of the mission focusing on preflight, on orbit, and postflight activities pertinent to the fourteen US experiments aboard Cosmos 1129 is presented.

Six Simonsen albino rats (45 days of age) were placed on a regimen of 40 g/day the semipurified Soviet paste diet used in the 18.5 day Cosmos 1129 spacecraft was to support the rats for various experiments on the physiological effects of weightlessness. The animals were maintained on the Soviet paste diet for 35 days, metabolic rate was measured and body composition was determined by direct analysis. The results were compared with a control group of rates of the same age, which had been kept on a standard commercial grain diet during the same period of time.

Experiments included: 30 young male Wistar SPF rats used for wide range physiological studies; experiments with plants, fungi, insects, and mammalian tissue cultures; radiation physics experiments; a heat convection study; a rat embryology experiment in which an attempt was made to breed 2 male and 5 female rats during the flight; and fertile quail eggs used to determine the effects of spaceflight on avian embryogenesis. Specimens for US experiments were initially prepared at the recovery site or in Moscow and transferred to US laboratories for complete analyses. An overview of the mission focusing on preflight, on orbit, and postflight activities pertinent to the fourteen US experiments aboard Cosmos 1129 is presented.

Context. At high redshift, starburst galaxies present irregular morphologies with 10-20% of their star formation occurring in giant clumps. These clumpy galaxies are considered the progenitors of local disk galaxies. To understand the properties of starbursts at intermediate and low redshift, it is fundamental to track their evolution and the possible link with the systems at higher z. Aims: We present an extensive, systematic, and multiband search and analysis of the starburst galaxies at redshift (0 < z < 0.5) in the COSMOS field, as well as detailed characteristics of their star-forming clumps by using Hubble Space Telescope/Advance Camera for Surveys (HST/ACS) images. Methods: The starburst galaxies are identified using a tailor-made intermediate-band color excess selection, tracing the simultaneous presence of Hα and [OIII] emission lines in the galaxies. Our methodology uses previous information from the zCOSMOS spectral database to calibrate the color excess as a function of the equivalent width of both spectral lines. This technique allows us to identify 220 starburst galaxies at redshift 0 < z < 0.5 using the SUBARU intermediate-band filters. Combining the high spatial resolution images from the HST/ACS with ground-based multi-wavelength photometry, we identify and parametrize the star-forming clumps in every galaxy. Their principal properties, sizes, masses, and star formation rates are provided. Results: The mass distribution of the starburst galaxies is remarkably similar to that of the whole galaxy sample with a peak around M/M⊙ ~ 2 × 108 and only a few galaxies with M/M⊙ > 1010. We classify galaxies into three main types, depending on their HST morphology: single knot (Sknot), single star-forming knot plus diffuse light (Sknot+diffuse), and multiple star-forming knots (Mknots/clumpy) galaxy. We found a fraction of Mknots/clumpy galaxy fclumpy = 0.24 considering out total sample of starburst galaxies up to z ~ 0.5. The individual star

Attempts to explain Claude Monet's obsession with water lilies in the last 25 years of his life through an interdisciplinary approach combining ideas from the history of landscape design, social history, and anthropology. Offers Monet's gardens at Giverny (France), his series paintings, and the railroad as some possible influences on his painting.…

The USSR Cosmos Biosatellites are unmanned missions with durations of approximately 14 days. They are capable of carrying a wide variety of biological specimens such as cells, tissues, plants, and animals, including rodents and rhesus monkeys. The absence of a crew is an advantage with respect to the use of radioisotopes or other toxic materials and contaminants, but a disadvantage with respect to the performance of inflight procedures or repair of hardware failures. Thus, experiments hardware and procedures must be either completely automated or remotely controlled from the ground. A serious limiting factor for experiments is the amount of electrical powers available, so when possible experiments should be self-contained with their own batteries and data recording devices. Late loading is restricted to approximately 48 hours before launch and access time upon recovery is not precise since there is a ballistic reentry and the capsule must first be located and recovery vehicles dispatched to the site. Launches are quite reliable and there is a proven track record of nine previous Biosatellite flights. This paper will present data and experience from the seven previous Cosmos flights in which the US has participated as well as the key areas of consideration in planning a flight investigation aboard this Biosatellite platform.

Results of the experiments on board Cosmos-2044 (Biosatellite 9) are presented. Various nuclear track detectors (NTD) (dielectric, AgCl-based, nuclear emulsions) were used to obtain the LET spectra inside and outside the satellite. The spectra from the different NTDs have proved to be in general agreement. The results of LET spectra calculations using two different models are also presented. The resultant LET distributions are used to calculate the absorbed and equivalent doses and the orbit-averaged quality factors (QF) of the cosmic rays (CR). Absorbed dose rates inside (approximately 20 g cm-2 shielding) and outside (1 g cm-2) the spacecraft, omitting electrons, were found to be 4.8 and 8.6 mrad d-1, respectively, while the corresponding equivalent doses were 8.8 and 19.7 mrem d-1. The effects of the flight parameters on the total fluence of, and on the dose from, the CR particles are analyzed. Integral dose distributions of the detected particles are also determined. The LET values which separate absorbed and equivalent doses into 50% intervals are estimated. The CR-39 dielectric NTD is shown to detect 20-30% of the absorbed dose and 60-70% of the equivalent dose in the Cosmos-2044 orbit. The influence of solar activity phase on the magnitude of CR flux is discussed.

Written by a leading planetary scientist, this book tells the remarkable story of how our solar system came into existence. It provides a fast-paced and expert tour of our new understanding of the Earth, its planetary neighbours and other planetary systems. In a whirlwind adventure, we are shown how the formation of mighty Jupiter dominated the solar system, why Mars is so small, where comets come from, how rings form around planets, why asteroids exist and why Pluto isn't a planet at all. En route we discover that chance events have shaped the course of the history of our solar system. Dramatic collisions, for example, have caused the tilts and spins of the planets, the extinction of the dinosaurs and the rise of man. Finally, we look at how suitable Earth is for harbouring life, what other planetary systems look like and whether we are alone in the cosmos. For all those interested in understanding our solar system and its plac e in the cosmos, this is a lucid and compelling read.

We present black hole masses and accretion rates for 182 Type 1 active galactic nuclei (AGNs) in COSMOS. We estimate masses using the scaling relations for the broad H {beta}, Mg II, and C IV emission lines in the redshift ranges 0.16 < z < 0.88, 1 < z < 2.4, and 2.7 < z < 4.9. We estimate the accretion rate using an Eddington ratio L{sub I}/L{sub Edd} estimated from optical and X-ray data. We find that very few Type 1 AGNs accrete below L{sub I} /L{sub Edd} {approx} 0.01, despite simulations of synthetic spectra which show that the survey is sensitive to such Type 1 AGNs. At lower accretion rates the broad-line region may become obscured, diluted, or nonexistent. We find evidence that Type 1 AGNs at higher accretion rates have higher optical luminosities, as more of their emission comes from the cool (optical) accretion disk with respect to shorter wavelengths. We measure a larger range in accretion rate than previous works, suggesting that COSMOS is more efficient at finding low accretion rate Type 1 AGNs. However, the measured range in accretion rate is still comparable to the intrinsic scatter from the scaling relations, suggesting that Type 1 AGNs accrete at a narrow range of Eddington ratio, with L{sub I} /L{sub Edd} {approx} 0.1.

Because soil water exerts a critical control on weather, climate, ecosystem, and water cycle, understanding soil moisture changes in time and space is crucial for many fields within natural sciences. A serious handicap in soil moisture measurements is the mismatch between limited point measurements using contact methods and remote sensing estimates over large areas. We present a novel method to measure soil moisture non- invasively at an intermediate spatial scale that will alleviate this problem. The method takes advantage of the dependence of cosmic-ray neutron intensity on the hydrogen content of soils (Zreda et al., Geophysical Research Letters, accepted). Low-energy cosmic-ray neutrons are produced and moderated in the soil, transported from the soil into the atmosphere where they are measured with a cosmic-ray neutron probe to provide integrated soil moisture content over a footprint of several hundred meters and a depth of a few decimeters. The method and the instrument are intended for deployment in the continental-scale COSMOS network that is designed to cover the contiguous region of the USA. Fully deployed, the COSMOS network will consist of up to 500 probes, and will provide continuous soil moisture content (together with atmospheric pressure, temperature and relative humidity) measured and reported hourly. These data will be used for initialization and assimilation of soil moisture conditions in weather and short-term (seasonal) climate forecasting, and for other land-surface applications.

The USSR Cosmos Biosatellites are unmanned missions with durations of approximately 14 days. They are capable of carrying a wide variety of biological specimens such as cells, tissues, plants, and animals, including rodents and rhesus monkeys. The absence of a crew is an advantage with respect to the use of radioisotopes or other toxic materials and contaminants, but a disadvantage with respect to the performance of inflight procedures or repair of hardware failures. Thus, experiments hardware and procedures must be either completely automated or remotely controlled from the ground. A serious limiting factor for experiments is the amount of electrical powers available, so when possible experiments should be self-contained with their own batteries and data recording devices. Late loading is restricted to approximately 48 hours before launch and access time upon recovery is not precise since there is a ballistic reentry and the capsule must first be located and recovery vehicles dispatched to the site. Launches are quite reliable and there is a proven track record of nine previous Biosatellite flights. This paper will present data and experience from the seven previous Cosmos flights in which the US has participated as well as the key areas of consideration in planning a flight investigation aboard this Biosatellite platform. PMID:11537653

Recent data from the southern Rocky Mountains demonstrate how a COSMOS sensor can be used in two different modes, invasive and non-invasive, for measuring snow. The non-invasive mode provides an average snow water equivalent (SWE) depth over an area of approximately 40 ha, but only up to a depth of about 10 cm SWE. Using two different energy channels, the non-invasive technique can also be used to infer the presence of canopy intercepted snow, and shows promise for quantifying SWE in the canopy. Because of its large footprint, the non-invasive sensor can also measure SWE from a moving motor vehicle. The invasive mode provides a much greater depth range, theoretically at least several meters of SWE, but over only a few square meters. SWE measured with the invasive COSMOS sensor correlates closely (R2 > 0.96) with SWE measured by an adjacent snow pillow during the snow accumulation season. In summer, both invasive and non-invasive sensors can be used to monitor soil water content, thus constraining another key variable in hydrologic forecasting models.

This paper describes the application of a new, integrated modeling and simulation framework, encompassing the space situational awareness (SSA) enterprise, to the recent Cosmos-Iridium collision. This framework is based on a flexible, scalable architecture to enable efficient simulation of the current SSA enterprise, and to accommodate future advancements in SSA systems. In particular, the code is designed to take advantage of massively parallel, high-performance computer systems available, for example, at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. We will describe the application of this framework to the recent collision of the Cosmos and Iridium satellites, including (1) detailed hydrodynamic modeling of the satellite collision and resulting debris generation, (2) orbital propagation of the simulated debris and analysis of the increased risk to other satellites (3) calculation of the radar and optical signatures of the simulated debris and modeling of debris detection with space surveillance radar and optical systems (4) determination of simulated debris orbits from modeled space surveillance observations and analysis of the resulting orbital accuracy, (5) comparison of these modeling and simulation results with Space Surveillance Network observations. We will also discuss the use of this integrated modeling and simulation framework to analyze the risks and consequences of future satellite collisions and to assess strategies for mitigating or avoiding future incidents, including the addition of new sensor systems, used in conjunction with the Space Surveillance Network, for improving space situational awareness.

We present a translation and analysis of an unpublished manuscript by Albert Einstein in which he attempted to construct a `steady-state' model of the universe. The manuscript, which appears to have been written in early 1931, demonstrates that Einstein once explored a cosmic model in which the mean density of matter in an expanding universe is maintained constant by the continuous formation of matter from empty space. This model is very different to previously known Einsteinian models of the cosmos (both static and dynamic) but anticipates the later steady-state cosmology of Hoyle, Bondi and Gold in some ways. We find that Einstein's steady-state model contains a fundamental flaw and suggest that it was abandoned for this reason. We also suggest that he declined to explore a more sophisticated version because he found such theories rather contrived. The manuscript is of historical interest because it reveals that Einstein debated between steady-state and evolving models of the cosmos decades before a similar debate took place in the cosmological community.

Results of the experiments on board Cosmos-2044 (Biosatellite 9) are presented. Various nuclear track detectors (NTD) (dielectric, AgCl-based, nuclear emulsions) were used to obtain the Linear Energy Transfer (LET) spectra inside and outside the satellite. The spectra from the different NTDs have proved to be in general agreement. The results of LET spectra calculations using two different models are also presented. The resultant LET distributions are used to calculate the absorbed and equivalent doses and the orbit-averaged quality factors (QF) of the cosmic rays (CR). Absorbed dose rates inside (approximately 20 g cm (exp -2) shielding) and outside (1 g cm(exp -2) the spacecraft, omitting electrons, were found to be 4.8 and 8.6 mrad d (exp -1), respectively, while the corresponding equivalent doses were 8.8 and 19.7 mrem d(exp -1). The effects of the flight parameters on the total fluence of, and on the dose from the CR particles are analyzed. Integral dose distributions of the detected particles are also determined. The LET values which separate absorbed and equivalent doses into 50% intervals are estimated. The CR-39 dielectric NTD is shown to detect 20-30% of the absorbed dose and 60-70% of the equivalent dose in the Cosmos-2044 orbit. The influence of solar activity phase on the magnitude of CR flux is discussed.

Cosmos 2229 was launched on December 29, 1992, containing a biological payload including two young male rhesus monkeys, insects, amphibians, and cell cultures. The biosatellite was launched from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in Russia for a mission duration of 11.5 days. The major research objectives were: (1) Study of adaptive response mechanisms of mammals during flight; and (2) Study of physiological mechanisms underlying vestibular, motor system and brain function in primates during early and later adaptation phases. American scientists and their Russian collaborators conducted 11 experiments on this mission which included extensive preflight and postflight studies with rhesus monkeys. Biosamples and data were subsequently transferred to the United States. The U.S. responsibilities for this flight included the development of experiment protocols, the fabrication of some flight instrumentation and experiment-specific ground-based hardware, the conducting of preflight and postflight testing and the analysis of biospecimens and data for the U.S. experiments. A description of the Cosmos 2229 mission is presented in this report including preflight, on-orbit and postflight activities. The flight and ground-based bioinstrumentation which was developed by the U.S. and Russia is also described, along with the associated preflight testing ot the U.S. hardware. Final Science Reports for the experiments are also included.

Cosmos 1 is a privately funded mission, the first ever attempted by a space interest organization. Sponsored by Cosmos Studios and the Arts and Entertainment Network, it is being carried out by The Planetary Society. The spacecraft is being developed and will be launched in Russia by a team headed by the Babakin Space Center and the Space Research Institute. The goal is to provide the first demonstration of solar sailing. It is hoped that such a technology demonstration mission that will open the way for solar sailing to reach its documented potential for low cost and round trip interplanetary missions, (Friedman et. al., 1978) and eventually for interstellar flight. Cosmos 1's mission success is defined as the spacecraft's orbital period (energy or semi-major axis) being measurably increased by controlled flight using sunlight pressure to increase orbital velocity. To achieve this goal, the spacecraft must fly above the sensible atmosphere so that atmospheric drag is inconsequential compared to the solar radiation pressure. Normally, a solar sail is designed to fly in deep space away from planetary gravity wells such as Earth's. The complexity of our task of demonstrating the flight of the solar sail is dramatically increased by the need to re-orient the sails several times per orbit and the presence of Earth's atmosphere. Further complicating matters is our launch date in 2002, which is near a time of solar maximum when the atmosphere extends to higher altitudes than normal. To avoid being trapped by the Earth's atmosphere, we have to go to at least 800 kilometers altitude to begin our orbital flight. This can be achieved with our planned launch on a Volna rocket from the Barents Sea in Russia. Volna is a converted submarine launched ballistic missile, the SS-N-18, developed and operated by the Makeev Rocket Design Bureau, within RosAviaKosmos, the Russian space agency. In addition to the 3-stage Volna, an orbit insertion motor is required. Babakin Space Center

We report the final optical identifications of the medium-depth ({approx}60 ks), contiguous (2 deg{sup 2}) XMM-Newton survey of the COSMOS field. XMM-Newton has detected {approx}1800 X-ray sources down to limiting fluxes of {approx}5 x 10{sup -16}, {approx}3 x 10{sup -15}, and {approx}7 x 10{sup -15} erg cm{sup -2} s{sup -1} in the 0.5-2 keV, 2-10 keV, and 5-10 keV bands, respectively ({approx}1 x 10{sup -15}, {approx}6 x 10{sup -15}, and {approx}1 x 10{sup -14} erg cm{sup -2} s{sup -1}, in the three bands, respectively, over 50% of the area). The work is complemented by an extensive collection of multiwavelength data from 24 {mu}m to UV, available from the COSMOS survey, for each of the X-ray sources, including spectroscopic redshifts for {approx}>50% of the sample, and high-quality photometric redshifts for the rest. The XMM and multiwavelength flux limits are well matched: 1760 (98%) of the X-ray sources have optical counterparts, 1711 ({approx}95%) have IRAC counterparts, and 1394 ({approx}78%) have MIPS 24 {mu}m detections. Thanks to the redshift completeness (almost 100%) we were able to constrain the high-luminosity tail of the X-ray luminosity function confirming that the peak of the number density of log L{sub X} > 44.5 active galactic nuclei (AGNs) is at z {approx} 2. Spectroscopically identified obscured and unobscured AGNs, as well as normal and star-forming galaxies, present well-defined optical and infrared properties. We devised a robust method to identify a sample of {approx}150 high-redshift (z > 1), obscured AGN candidates for which optical spectroscopy is not available. We were able to determine that the fraction of the obscured AGN population at the highest (L{sub X} > 10{sup 44} erg s{sup -1}) X-ray luminosity is {approx}15%-30% when selection effects are taken into account, providing an important observational constraint for X-ray background synthesis. We studied in detail the optical spectrum and the overall spectral energy distribution of a

After Cosmos 2251 and Iridium 33 collision breakup event, the institutions at home and abroad began the collision warning analysis for the event. This paper compared the results from the different research units and discussed the problems of the current collision warning work, then gave the suggestions of further study.

The Cosmic-ray Soil Moisture Observing System (COSMOS) is a new and innovative method for estimating surface and near surface soil moisture at large (~700 m) scales. This system accounts for liquid water within its measurement volume. Many of the sites used in the early validation of the system had...

The experiment on investigation of effect of the HF emission (300 W) by the dipole antenna on the ionospheric plasma was carried out onboard the COSMOS-1809 satellite (1987). The sounder accelerated particles (SAP) at the electron cyclotron harmonics n x omegace and in the frequency region of antenna resonance were detected by the charged particle spectrometer.

Blood plasma aldosterone concentration and renin activity were studied in rats flow in space on the Cosmos 1129 satellite using radioimmunoassay techniques. Immediately after the flight, the animals presented significant decreases in plasma renin activity, as compared to rats in the vivarium control and animals in the synchronous experiment. R. J.

We present a comprehensive analysis of weak gravitational lensing by large-scale structure in the Hubble Space Telescope Cosmic Evolution Survey (COSMOS), in which we combine space-based galaxy shape measurements with ground-based photometric redshifts to study the redshift dependence of the lensing signal and constrain cosmological parameters. After applying our weak lensing-optimized data reduction, principal-component interpolation for the spatially, and temporally varying ACS point-spread function, and improved modelling of charge-transfer inefficiency, we measured a lensing signal that is consistent with pure gravitational modes and no significant shape systematics. We carefully estimated the statistical uncertainty from simulated COSMOS-like fields obtained from ray-tracing through the Millennium Simulation, including the full non-Gaussian sampling variance. We tested our lensing pipeline on simulated space-based data, recalibrated non-linear power spectrum corrections using the ray-tracing analysis, employed photometric redshift information to reduce potential contamination by intrinsic galaxy alignments, and marginalized over systematic uncertainties. We find that the weak lensing signal scales with redshift as expected from general relativity for a concordance ΛCDM cosmology, including the full cross-correlations between different redshift bins. Assuming a flat ΛCDM cosmology, we measure σ_8(Ω_m/0.3)0.51 = 0.75±0.08 from lensing, in perfect agreement with WMAP-5, yielding joint constraints Ω_m = 0.266+0.025-0.023, σ_8 = 0.802+0.028-0.029 (all 68.3% conf.). Dropping the assumption of flatness and using priors from the HST Key Project and Big-Bang nucleosynthesis only, we find a negative deceleration parameter q0 at 94.3% confidence from the tomographic lensing analysis, providing independent evidence of the accelerated expansion of the Universe. For a flat wCDM cosmology and prior w ∈ [-2,0], we obtain w

Water present in the soils plays a key role in weather and climate prediction via its direct contribution to the partitioning of precipitation to infiltration or runoff as well as the partitioning of net radiative flux into sensible, latent, and ground heat fluxes at the surface. In addition, biogeochemical cycles are also affected by soil moisture conditions since vegetation depends on the water and nutrients available in the soil. Although recognized as a major component in weather and climate, measurements of soil water content need yet to be improved, especially at intermediate horizontal scales (i.e., on the order of 1 km), due to its large spatial heterogeneity. Satellite remote sensing provides measurements at larger spatial scales but with low temporal resolution. More localized sensors such as TDR probes have higher temporal resolution but their installation are destructive, and their support volume is too small, which makes the methodology extremely costly and practically unfeasible to be implemented at intermediate scales discussed here. However, newly developed cosmic-ray sensors can measure hourly integrated volumetric water content within a radius of 300-400 m. These sensors are being deployed in the USA as part of the COsmic-ray Soil Moisture Observing System (COSMOS). The neutron intensity (i.e., counts per time period) captured by these sensors is inversely related to the amount of hydrogen in the soil (a result that was usually classified as "noise" by nuclear physicists in the mid-1900's). These responses to soil moisture are simulated using a Monte Carlo radiation transport code (MCNPX) usually assuming no vegetation cover and dry atmosphere. Given the broad range of vegetation cover types and climatic regions these probes are being deployed, we perform sensitivity analyses using MCNPX to determine whether signals can be detected for variations of water vapor content in the atmosphere as well as the presence of trees within the footprint of the

Using the wide multiband photometry available in the Cosmic Evolution Survey (COSMOS) field, we explore the host galaxy properties of a large sample of active galactic nuclei (AGNs; ˜1700 objects) with Lbol ranging from 1043 to 1047 erg s-1, obtained by combining X-ray and optical spectroscopic selections. Based on a careful study of their spectral energy distributions, which have been parametrized using a two-component (AGN+galaxy) model fit, we have derived dust-corrected rest-frame magnitudes, colours and stellar masses of the obscured and unobscured AGN hosts up to high redshift (z≲3). Moreover, for the sample of obscured AGNs, we have also derived reliable star formation rates (SFRs). We find that AGN hosts span a large range of stellar masses and SFRs. No colour-bimodality is seen at any redshift in the AGN hosts, which are found to be mainly massive, red galaxies. Once we have accounted for the colour-mass degeneracy in well-defined mass-matched samples, we find a residual (marginal) enhancement of the incidence of AGNs in redder galaxies with lower specific SFRs. We argue that this result might emerge because of our ability to properly account for AGN light contamination and dust extinction, compared to surveys with a more limited multiwavelength coverage. However, because these colour shifts are relatively small, systematic effects could still be considered responsible for some of the observed trends. Interestingly, we find that the probability for a galaxy to host a black hole that is growing at any given 'specific accretion rate' (i.e. the ratio of X-ray luminosity to the host stellar mass) is almost independent of the host galaxy mass, while it decreases as a power law with LX/M*. By analysing the normalization of such a probability distribution, we show how the incidence of AGNs increases with redshift as rapidly as (1 + z)4, which closely resembles the overall evolution of the specific SFR of the entire galaxy population. We provide analytical

The effects of microgravity and hind limb suspension on the enzyme patterns are assessed within a slow twitch muscle (soleus) and a fast twitch muscle (tibialis anterior). Studies were made on 95 soleus fibers and about 300 tibialis anterior (TA) fibers. Over 2200 individual enzyme measurements were made. Six key metabolic enzymes (hexokinase, pyruvate kinease, citrate kinase, beta-hydroxyacyl CoA dehydrogenase, glucose-6-P dehydrogenase, and aspartate aminotransferase) plus glutaminase and glutamate decarboxylase, as well as glutamate, aspartate, and GABA, were measured in 11 regions of the hippocampal formation of synchronous, flight, and tail suspension rats. Major differences were observed in the normal distribution of each enzyme and amine acid, but no substantive effects of either microgravity or tail suspension on these patterns were clearly demonstrated.

Black holes present the extreme limits of physics. They are ubiquitous in the cosmos, and in some extra-dimensional scenarios they could be produced at colliders. They have also yielded a puzzle that challenges the foundations of physics. These talks will begin with an overview of the basics of black hole physics, and then briefly summarize some of the exciting developments with cosmic black holes. They will then turn to properties of quantum black holes, and the question of black hole production in high energy collisions, perhaps beginning with the LHC. I will then overview the apparent paradox emerging from Hawking's discovery of black hole evaporation, and what it could be teaching us about the foundations of quantum mechanics and gravity.

Past work demonstrates that strong lower hybrid (LH) waves can be excited by electromagnetic whistler mode waves throughout large regions of the topside ionosphere and magnetosphere. The effects of the excited LH waves upon the suprathermal ion population in the topside ionosphere and magnetosphere depend upon the distribution of LH wave amplitude with wavelength {lambda}. The present work reports plasma wave data from the DE-1 and COSMOS 1809 spacecraft which suggests that the excited LH wave spectrum has components for which {lambda} {le} 3.5 m when excitation occurs at a frequency roughly equal to the lower hybrid resonance frequency. This wavelength limit is a factor of {approximately} 3 below that reported in past work and suggests that the excited LH waves can interact with suprathermal H{sup +} ions with energy {le} 6 eV. This finding supports recent work concerning the heating of suprathermal ions above thunderstorm cells. 19 refs., 3 figs.

Space flight, with its unique environmental constraints such as immobilization, decreased and increased pressures, and radiation, is known to affect testicular morphology and spermatogenesis. Among the several biological experiments and animals on board COSMOS 1887 Biosputnik flight were 10 rats, from which were collected testicular tissue. Average weights of flight tests were 6.4 pct. below that of the vivarium control when normalized for weight loss/100 grams body weight. Counts of surviving spermatogonia per tubule cross section indicated an average of 39 spermatogonia for flight animals, 40 for synchronous controls and 44 for the vivarium controls. Serum testosterone was significantly decreased when compared to basal controls but the decrease was not significant when compared in vivarium and synchronous control groups. The significant decrease in spermatogonia and the decrease in serum testosterone are similar to that in animals flown on Space Lab 3 (Challenger Shuttle).

Past work demostrates that strong lower hybrid (LH) waves can be excited by electromagnetic whistler mode waves throughout large regions of the topside ionosphere and magnetosphere. The effects of the excited LH waves upon the suprathermal ion population in the topside ionosphere and magnetosphere depend upon the distribution of LH wave amplitude with wavelength lambda. The present work reports plasma wave data from the DE-1 and COSMOS 1809 spacecraft which suggests that the excited LH wave spectrum has components for which lambda less than or equal to 3.5 m when excitation occurs at a frequency roughly equal to the local lower hybrid resonance frequency. This wavelength limit is a factor of approximately 3 below that reported in past work and suggests that the excited LH waves can interact with suprathermal H(+) ions with energy less than or equal to 6 eV. This finding supports recent work concerning the heating of suprathermal ions above thunderstorm cells.

Significant absorbed dose levels exceeding 1.0 Gy day-1 have been measured on the external surface of the Cosmos 1887 biosatellite as functions of depth in stacks of thin thermoluminescent detectors (TLDs) of U.S.S.R. and U.S.A. manufacture. The dose was found to decrease rapidly with increasing absorber thickness, thereby indicating the presence of intensive fluxes of low-energy particles. Comparison between the U.S.S.R. and U.S.A. results and calculations based on the Vette Model environment are in satisfactory agreement. The major contribution to the dose under thin shielding thickness is shown to be from electrons. The fraction of the dose due to protons and heavier charged particles increases with shielding thickness.

Rats were subjected to 19.5 days of weightless space flight aboard the Soviet biosatellite, Cosmos 782. Based on the output of CO-14, survival parameters of a cohort of erythrocytes labeled 15.5 days preflight were evaluated upon return from orbit. These were compared to vivarium control rats injected at the same time. Statistical evaluation indicates that all survival factors were altered by the space flight. The mean potential lifespan, which was 63.0 days in the control rats, was decreased to 59.0 days in the flight rats, and random hemolysis was increased three-fold in the flight rats. The measured size of the cohort was decreased, lending further support to the idea that hemolysis was accelerated during some portion of the flight. A number of factors that might be contributory to these changes are discussed, including forces associated with launch and reentry, atmospheric and environmental parameters, dietary factors, radiation, and weightlessness.

A study was undertaken to determine if, and to what extent, pathological damage results from high-energy particles (HZE) transversing the eye. Light flashes experienced by space travellers indicate that HZE do indeed pass through and activate the retina, but whether actual biological damage occurs has not been investigated thoroughly. Thus, autopsies were performed on the eyes of rats which has been flown in Cosmos 782 satellite for 19.5 days. Comparisons with a control sample subjected to 1000 rads of Ar and Ne radiation show that pathological damage, when it occurs, affects the nucleus of the retina; simple light flashes are not thought to indicate a pathology, and result from activation of (but not damage to) the retina's outer segments.

Ten rats, five centrifuged during flight to simulate gravity and five stationary in flight and experiencing hypogravity, orbited the Earth. No differences were noted between flight-stationary and flight-centrifuged animals, but changes were seen between these two groups and ground controls. Morphological alterations were observed comparable to those in the experiment flown on Cosmos 782 and to the retinal cells exposed to high-energy particles at Berkeley. Affected cells in the outer nuclear layer showed swelling, clearing of cytoplasm, and disruption of the membranes. Tissue channels were again found, similar to those seen on 782. After space flight, preliminary data indicated an increase in cell size in montages of the nuclear layer of both groups of flight animals. This experiment shows that weightlessness and environmental conditions other than cosmic radiation do not contribute to the observed damage of retinal cells.

Significant absorbed dose levels exceeding 1.0 Gy day(exp -1) have been measured on the external surface of the Cosmos 1887 biosatellite as functions of depth in stacks of thin thermoluminescent detectors (TLD's) made in U.S.S.R. and U.S.A. The dose was found to decrease rapidly with increasing absorber thickness, thereby indicating the presence of intensive fluxes of low-energy particles. Comparison between the U.S.S.R. and U.S.A. results and calculations based on the Vette Model environment are in satisfactory agreement. The major contribution to the dose under thin shielding thickness is shown to be from electrons. The fraction of the dose due to protons and heavier charged particles increases with shielding thickness.

Black holes present the extreme limits of physics. They are ubiquitous in the cosmos, and in some extra-dimensional scenarios they could be produced at colliders. They have also yielded a puzzle that challenges the foundations of physics. These talks will begin with an overview of the basics of black hole physics, and then briefly summarize some of the exciting developments with cosmic black holes. They will then turn to properties of quantum black holes, and the question of black hole production in high energy collisions, perhaps beginning with the LHC. I will then overview the apparent paradox emerging from Hawking's discovery of black hole evaporation, and what it could be teaching us about the foundations of quantum mechanics and gravity.

COSMOS is a month-long, summer residential program in science and engineering for high school students held each year at four University of California (UC) campuses. Its goals are to expand the scientific horizons of our most talented students by exposing them to exciting fields of research and encouraging them to pursue STEM careers. Students live on campus and choose to study one of seven or eight different subject areas called “clusters.” We run the extremely successful Astronomy & Astrophysics Cluster at UC Irvine (UCI). Over four weeks, students take lecture courses in astrophysics, perform computer lab experiments, and complete a research project conducted in a small group under the supervision of a faculty member or teaching assistant (TA). Here we discuss our curriculum, lessons learned, and quantify student outcomes. We find that putting on a summer program for high school students is highly rewarding for the students as well as the faculty and graduate students.

Black holes present the extreme limits of physics. They are ubiquitous in the cosmos, and in some extra-dimensional scenarios they could be produced at colliders. They have also yielded a puzzle that challenges the foundations of physics. These talks will begin with an overview of the basics of black hole physics, and then briefly summarize some of the exciting developments with cosmic black holes. They will then turn to properties of quantum black holes, and the question of black hole production in high energy collisions, perhaps beginning with the LHC. I will then overview the apparent paradox emerging from Hawking's discovery of black hole evaporation, and what it could be teaching us about the foundations of quantum mechanics and gravity.

Black holes present the extreme limits of physics. They are ubiquitous in the cosmos, and in some extra-dimensional scenarios they could be produced at colliders. They have also yielded a puzzle that challenges the foundations of physics. These talks will begin with an overview of the basics of black hole physics, and then briefly summarize some of the exciting developments with cosmic black holes. They will then turn to properties of quantum black holes, and the question of black hole production in high energy collisions, perhaps beginning with the LHC. I will then overview the apparent paradox emerging from Hawking's discovery of black hole evaporation, and what it could be teaching us about the foundations of quantum mechanics and gravity.

Two processes for the fabrication of beam-leaded COS/MOS integrated circuits are described. The first process utilizes a composite gate dielectric of 800 A of silicon dioxide and 450 A of pyrolytically deposited A12O3 as an impurity barrier. The second process utilizes polysilicon gate metallization over which a sealing layer of 1000 A of pyrolytic Si3N4 is deposited. Three beam-lead integrated circuits have been implemented with the first process: (1) CD4000BL - three-input NOR gate; (2) CD4007BL - triple inverter; and (3) CD4013BL - dual D flip flop. An arithmetic and logic unit (ALU) integrated circuit was designed and implemented with the second process. The ALU chip allows addition with four bit accuracy. Processing details, device design and device characterization, circuit performance and life data are presented.

The flight procedure of ``Experience Triton'' on Cosmos 2229 made necessary to sacrifice the embarked females just after landing. In order to detect genetic abnormalities in the progeny of these adult females, we have performed a surgical procedure based on the transplantation of an ovarian piece on a recipient animal. One year later, as observed after laparotomy, the grafted ovaries exhibit oogonies and some growing oocytes. In present time, out of 10 castrated and grafted adult females only one is still alive bearing a large grafted ovary. Out of 5 castred and grafted juvenile males, three are still alive, two of them exhibit a developping grafted ovary. The grafted animals will be ready for mating within a few months. Therefore, it will soon be possible to study the progeny of animals that have been submitted to space conditions.

The results of the Cosmos 1514 cardiovascular experiment, in which the blood flow to the head and the carotid pressure of a rhesus monkey were measured during the 5-d spaceflight, are reported. A single cylindrical probe containing both pressure and flow transducers was chronically implanted as a cuff around the left common carotid artery; measurements were obtained for 4 min every 2 h and compared to identical recordings obtained during a preflight control period and during 12 h on a launch pad. Immediately on its insertion into orbit, mean arterial pressure increased by 10 percent and has maintained a 16-27 percent increase over the first few hours of flight before returning to baseline level. Blood flow showed reciprocal changes to pressure on orbital insertion. Cardiovascular system changes persisted into the second day of flight, with the signs of adaptation appearing on days 3-5.

Direct measurement of conduction currents in the electrostatic radiation shield model carried out on board the Cosmos 605 satellite yielded additional information on the dose, weight and size characteristics and helped to evaluate the power requirements for a real electrostatic radiation shield. It was found that the electrostatic shield power requirements (at an electric field strength of 10(7)V m-1 and total shielded surface of 10(2) m2) did not exceed 10 watts, i.e. it was at least one order of magnitude lower than had been assumed from data obtained in ground-based studies. These results show the feasibility of protective electric fields of the required strength, with the space vacuum around the vehicle being used as an insulating medium. PMID:12678110

Lemaître anticipated what are now assumed to be the most plausible models for both the beginning and the end of cosmos. He was also prescient in forging a link between microphysics and macrophysics, a process which is only culminating today, and his solutions with a cosmological constant provide a particularly interesting version of the modern-day multiverse scenario. Although some of his ideas were at first regarded sceptically by mainstream physics, their later reception illustrates that the boundary between cosmology and meta-cosmology is always evolving. He was generally reluctant to link cosmological and theological ideas but I will argue that cosmology offers some scope for productive science-religion dialogue and suggest that mind may be a fundamental rather than incidental feature of the universe.

Plasma and tissue lipids in male SPF Wistar rats flown for 18.5 days aboard the Cosmos 936 biosatellite were analyzed. One group of rats was subjected to artificial gravity by use of a centrifuge during the flight. An experiment simulating known space flight factors other than weightlessness was done on Earth. An increase of total cholesterol in plasma, of nonesterified fatty acids in plasma and brown adipose tissue, of triacylglycerols in plasma, liver, thymus and bone marrow was noted several hours after biosatellite landing. Smaller changes were observed in the terrestrial control experiment. With the exception of triacylglycerol accumulation in bone marrow, these increases disappeared 25 days after biosatellite landing. Exposing the rats aboard the biosatellite to artificial gravity was beneficial in the sense that such exposure inhibited the phospholipid and triacylglycerol increase in plasma and inhibited the increase of triacylglycerol in liver and especially in bone marrow.

In order to reveal the biological significance of gravity, microgravity effects have been studied at the cellular, organism and population levels. The following questions arise. Do any gravity - dependent processes exist in a cell? Is cell adaptation to weightlessness possible; if so, what role may cytoskeleton, the genetic apparatus play in it? What are the consequences of the lack of convection in weightlessness for the performance of morphogenesis? Do the integral characteristics of living beings change in weightlessness? Is there any change in ``biological capacity'' of space, its resistance to expansion of life? What are the direction and intensity of microgravity action as a factor of natural selection, the driving force of evolution? These problems are discussed from a theoretical point of view, and in the light of results obtained in experiments flown aboard biosatellites ``Cosmos''.

A unified geometrical approach to strong and gravitational interactions has been recently proposed, based on the classical methods of general relativity. According to it, hadrons can be regarded as "black-hole type" solutions of new field equations describing two tensorial metric-fields (the ordinary gravitational field, and the "strong" one). In this paper, the authors seize the opportunity for an improved exposition of some elements of the theory relevant to our present scope, and they extend the Bekenstein-Hawking thermodynamics to the "strong black holes" (SBH). They show (1) that SBH thermodynamics seems to require a new expansion of our cosmos after its "big crunch"; (2) that a collapsing star with a mass 3 - 5 M_sun;, once reached the neutron-star density, could re-explode tending to form a (radiating) object with a diameter of the order of 1 light-day.

Black holes present the extreme limits of physics. They are ubiquitous in the cosmos, and in some extra-dimensional scenarios they could be produced at colliders. They have also yielded a puzzle that challenges the foundations of physics. These talks will begin with an overview of the basics of black hole physics, and then briefly summarize some of the exciting developments with cosmic black holes. They will then turn to properties of quantum black holes, and the question of black hole production in high energy collisions, perhaps beginning with the LHC. I will then overview the apparent paradox emerging from Hawking's discovery of black hole evaporation, and what it could be teaching us about the foundations of quantum mechanics and gravity.

Black holes present the extreme limits of physics. They are ubiquitous in the cosmos, and in some extra-dimensional scenarios they could be produced at colliders. They have also yielded a puzzle that challenges the foundations of physics. These talks will begin with an overview of the basics of black hole physics, and then briefly summarize some of the exciting developments with cosmic black holes. They will then turn to properties of quantum black holes, and the question of black hole production in high energy collisions, perhaps beginning with the LHC. I will then overview the apparent paradox emerging from Hawking's discovery of black hole evaporation, and what it could be teaching us about the foundations of quantum mechanics and gravity.

The experiment on Cosmos 1129 was based on our results obtained in rats exposed to single or repeated restrain stress in the laboratory. These results have convincingly demonstrated a significant increase of serotonin concentration (5-HT) in the hypothalamus in acutely stressed rats. This response, which was found also in the isolated hypothalamic nuclei, was diminished in repeatedly (40 times) immobilized rats. While the concentration of 5-HT was unchanged in the majority of the hypothalamic nuclei of animals subjected to cosmic flight, an increase was recorded only in the supraoptic nucleus (NSO) and a decrease in the periventricular nucleus. These findings demonstrate that only few areas of the hypothalamus respond to cosmic flight with changes of 5-HT concentration and suggest either that long-term cosmic flight cannot be an intensive stressor or that during the flight the rats became already adapted to its long-term effect. However, the exposure of flight rats to repeated immobilization stress resulted in a significant increase of 5-HT in the NSO, paraventricular and dorsomedial (NDM) nuclei. It should be noted that we have never seen any changes of 5-HT concentration, tryptophan hydroxylase and monoamineoxidase activities in repeatedly (40 times) immobilized rats. On the other hand, the increase of 5-HT concentration in the NDM is a typical finding after seven exposures of rats to immobilization on Earth, daily for 150 min. In the experiment COSMOS 1129 such an increase of 5-HT concentration in the NDM was found not only in the flight group but also in the control group of rats subjected to five daily exposures of immobilization stress. With respect to these findings, the increased 5-HT concentrations observed in some isolated hypothalamic nuclei in the flight group of rats exposed after landing to repeated immobilization stress suggest that long-term space flight and the state of weightlessness do not represent a stressogenic factor with respect to the

During the flight of the Cosmos-2044 biosatellite, joint U.S.S.R.-U.S.A. investigations of different characteristics of cosmic radiation (CR) in the near-Earth environment were carried out. The U.S. dielectric track detectors CR-39 and Soviet BYa- and BR-type nuclear photo-emulsions were used as detectors. The present work shows some results of experimental measurements of linear energy transfer (LET) spectra of CR particles obtained with the use of these detectors, which were placed both inside and outside the satellite. The LET spectra measurement with plastic detectors is composed of two parts: the measurement of galactic cosmic rays (GCR) particles, and of short-range particles. The contributions of these components to the total LET distribution at various thicknesses of the shielding were analyzed and the results of these studies are presented. Calculated LET spectra in the Cosmos-2044 orbit were compared with experimental data. On the basis of experimental and calculated values of the LET spectra, absorbed and equivalent CR doses were calculated. In the shielding range of 1-1.5 g cm-2, outside the spacecraft, the photo-emulsions yielded 10.3 mrad d-1 and 27.5 mrem d-1 (LET > or = 2 MeV cm-1) while the CR-39 yielded averages of 1.43 mrad d-1 and 13.4 mrem d-1 (LET > or = 40 MeV cm-1). Inside the spacecraft (> or = 10 g cm-2) the photo-emulsions yielded 8.9 mrad d-1 and 14.5 mrem d-1.

'Under African Skies', a project of the charity organization Cosmos Education, undertook an excursion to sub-Saharan Africa to teach science and technology to children in primary and secondary schools. The role of science and technology for the purpose of development was emphasized, and the project directly addresses one of the recommendations of UNISPACE-III Vienna Declaration. Teaching primarily focused on astronomy and space science. Over 3500 primary and secondary school students in 5 different countries were reached. Although it is hard to quantify the impact of the teaching, the students' enthusiasm and questions demonstrated that they acquired knowledge and interest in science. In this talk we will summarize the objectives and achievements of the trip and future planned trips by Cosmos Education. We will also show coverage of the trip by the BBC program 'Final Frontier'. The youth perspective on education is outlined in the Global Space Education Curriculum, a project initiated at the UNISPACE III Space Generation Forum (SGF). This initiative is being further developed at the Space Generation Summit (SGS), an event at World Space Congress (WSC) that will unite international students and young professionals to develop a youth vision and strategy for the peaceful uses of space. SGS, endorsed by the United Nations, will take place from October 11-13th, during which the 200 delegates will discuss ongoing youth space activities, particularly those stemming from the UNISPACE-III/SGF and taken forward by the Space Generation Advisory Council. Delegates will address a variety of topics with the goal of devising new recommendations according to the theme, 'Accelerating Our Pace in Space'. The material presented here and in other technical sessions throughout WSC includes the results of these discussions.

We search for high-redshift (z ∼1-2) galaxy clusters using low power radio galaxies (FR I) as beacons and our newly developed Poisson probability method based on photometric redshift information and galaxy number counts. We use a sample of 32 FR Is within the Cosmic Evolution Survey (COSMOS) field from the Chiaberge et al. catalog. We derive a reliable subsample of 21 bona fide low luminosity radio galaxies (LLRGs) and a subsample of 11 high luminosity radio galaxies (HLRGs), on the basis of photometric redshift information and NRAO VLA Sky Survey radio fluxes. The LLRGs are selected to have 1.4 GHz rest frame luminosities lower than the fiducial FR I/FR II divide. This also allows us to estimate the comoving space density of sources with L {sub 1.4} ≅ 10{sup 32.3} erg s{sup –1} Hz{sup –1} at z ≅ 1.1, which strengthens the case for a strong cosmological evolution of these sources. In the fields of the LLRGs and HLRGs we find evidence that 14 and 8 of them reside in rich groups or galaxy clusters, respectively. Thus, overdensities are found around ∼70% of the FR Is, independently of the considered subsample. This rate is in agreement with the fraction found for low redshift FR Is and it is significantly higher than that for FR IIs at all redshifts. Although our method is primarily introduced for the COSMOS survey, it may be applied to both present and future wide field surveys such as Sloan Digital Sky Survey Stripe 82, LSST, and Euclid. Furthermore, cluster candidates found with our method are excellent targets for next generation space telescopes such as James Webb Space Telescope.

Large-scale structures (LSSs) out to z < 3.0 are measured in the Cosmic Evolution Survey (COSMOS) using extremely accurate photometric redshifts (photoz). The K{sub s} -band-selected sample (from Ultra-Vista) is comprised of 155,954 galaxies. Two techniques-adaptive smoothing and Voronoi tessellation-are used to estimate the environmental densities within 127 redshift slices. Approximately 250 statistically significant overdense structures are identified out to z = 3.0 with shapes varying from elongated filamentary structures to more circularly symmetric concentrations. We also compare the densities derived for COSMOS with those based on semi-analytic predictions for a {Lambda}CDM simulation and find excellent overall agreement between the mean densities as a function of redshift and the range of densities. The galaxy properties (stellar mass, spectral energy distributions (SEDs), and star formation rates (SFRs)) are strongly correlated with environmental density and redshift, particularly at z < 1.0-1.2. Classifying the spectral type of each galaxy using the rest-frame b - i color (from the photoz SED fitting), we find a strong correlation of early-type galaxies (E-Sa) with high-density environments, while the degree of environmental segregation varies systematically with redshift out to z {approx} 1.3. In the highest density regions, 80% of the galaxies are early types at z = 0.2 compared to only 20% at z = 1.5. The SFRs and the star formation timescales exhibit clear environmental correlations. At z > 0.8, the SFR density is uniformly distributed over all environmental density percentiles, while at lower redshifts the dominant contribution is shifted to galaxies in lower density environments.

Aims: This work addresses the AGN IR-selection dependency on intrinsic source luminosity and obscuration, in order to identify and characterise biases that could affect conclusions in studies. Methods: We study IR-selected AGN in the Chandra Deep Field South (CDFS) survey and in the Cosmological Survey (COSMOS). The AGN sample is divided into low and high X-ray luminosity classes and into unobscured (type-1) and obscured (type-2) classes by means of X-ray and optical spectroscopy data. Specifically in the X-ray regime, we adopt the intrinsic luminosity taking the estimated column density (NH) into account. We also take the opportunity to highlight important differences resulting from adopting different methods of assessing AGN obscuration. Results: In agreement with previous studies, we also find that AGN IR-selection efficiency shows a decrease with decreasing source AGN X-ray luminosity. For the intermediate-luminosity AGN population (43.3 ≲ log (LX [erg s-1] ) ≲ 44), the efficiency also worsens with increasing obscuration (NH). The same sample also shows an evolution with cosmic time of the obscured fraction at the highest X-ray luminosities, independently of the adopted type-1/type-2 classification method. Conclusions: We confirm that AGN IR-selection is genuinely biased towards unobscured AGNe, but only at intermediate luminosities. At the highest luminosities, where AGN IR-selection is more efficient, there is no obscuration bias. We show that type-1 AGNe are intrinsically more luminous than type-2 AGNe only at z ≲ 1.6, thus resulting in more type-1 AGN being selected when the IR survey is shallower. Based on this and other studies, we conclude that deep hard-X-ray coverages, high-resolution IR imaging, or a combination of IR and radio data are required to recover the lower luminosity obscured AGN population. In addition, wide IR surveys are needed to recover the rare powerful, obscured AGN population. Finally, when the James Webb Space Telescope comes

In the years before television, videos, radio. movies, or even loudspeakers, Ormsby MacKnight Mitchel (1809-1862) was the best-known popularizer of astronomy and the scientific study of the universe in nineteenth-century America. Each winter he traveled the country by railroad, steamer, and stagecoach, speaking to large paying crowds in principal cities from Boston, New York, and Philadelphia through Cincinnati to New Orleans on the cosmos and our place in it, with special attention to possible inhabitants of planers orbiting other stars. Mitchel had much the same attraction as Sagan did in our time, and awakened many people's interest in astronomy through the human angle, as Carl did. His argument was simple, and according to Frank Triplett goes back thousands of years: other stars are suns, our sun has planets with people on one of them, why should not other stars also have populated planets? But first Mitchel, like Sagan, always explained clearly the discoveries of astronomy that fleshed out this argument with facts. He emphasized the ``clockwork universe", governed by gravity, that Newton, Herschel, and Laplace had investigated and found to be stable. There were many other similarities between these two great popularizers. Mitchel's base was the Cincinnati Observatory, which he had founded, raising the funds for it himself in small contributions from hundreds of ``members", which he publicised as far more democratic than support from European kings and lords. He went abroad to get a telescope, and finally found his ``Great [12-inch] Refractor" in Munich, with help from John Quincy Adams, Astronomer Royal George Biddle Airy, and Paris Observatory Director Fracois Arago, in spite of a rebuff by President John Tyler. These episodes have similarities in Sagan's lobbying NASA for close-up images of Mars. Views of other American professional astronomers on life on other worlds will also be described briefly, from Denison Olmsted, Elias Loomis, Charles A. Young (who

The Stellar Imager (SI) is one of NASA's "Vision Missions" - concepts for future, space-based, strategic missions that could enormously increase our capabilities for observing the Cosmos. SI is designed as a UV/Optical Interferometer which will enable 0.1 milli-arcsecond (mas) spectral imaging of stellar surfaces and, via asteroseismology, stellar interiors and of the Universe in general. The ultra-sharp images of the Stellar Imager will revolutionize our view of many dynamic astrophysical processes by transforming point sources into extended sources, and snapshots into evolving views. SI, with a characteristic angular resolution of 0.1 milli-arcseconds at 2000 Angstroms, represents an advance in image detail of several hundred times over that provided by the Hubble Space Telescope. The Stellar Imager will zoom in on what today-with few exceptions - we only know as point sources, revealing processes never before seen, thus providing a tool as fundamental to astrophysics as the microscope is to the study of life on Earth. SI's science focuses on the role of magnetism in the Universe, particularly on magnetic activity on the surfaces of stars like the Sun. It's prime goal is to enable long-term forecasting of solar activity and the space weather that it drives, in support of the Living With a Star program in the Exploration Era. SI will also revolutionize our understanding of the formation of planetary systems, of the habitability and climatology of distant planets, and of many magneto-hydrodynamically controlled processes in the Universe. Stellar Imager is included as a "Flagship and Landmark Discovery Mission" in the 2005 Sun Solar System Connection (SSSC) Roadmap and as a candidate for a "Pathways to Life Observatory" in the Exploration of the Universe Division (EUD) Roadmap (May, 2005) and as such is a candidate mission for the 2025-2030 timeframe. An artist's drawing of the current "baseline" concept for SI is presented.

We present a first English translation and analysis of a little-known review of relativistic cosmology written by Albert Einstein in late 1932. The article, which was published in 1933 in a book of Einstein papers translated into French, contains a substantial review of static and dynamic relativistic models of the cosmos, culminating in a discussion of the Einstein-de Sitter model. The article offers a valuable contemporaneous insight into Einstein's cosmology in the early 1930s and confirms that his interest lay in the development of the simplest model of the cosmos that could account for observation. The article also confirms that Einstein did not believe that simplified relativistic models could give an accurate description of the early universe.

A clear and comprehensive picture describing the physical processes which regulate the stellar mass assembly is still missing in galaxy formation scenario. I will present a measurement of the galaxy stellar mass function and stellar mass density from z=0.2 out to z=6. Our study relies on deep near-infrared imaging over wide fields: the WIRCAM/CFHT coverage of the 20 sq-deg VIPERS fields combined with the new IRAC/Spitzer coverage (the SPLASH survey) of the 2 sq-deg COSMOS field. Our analysis is based on photometric redshifts of 1,5 million of galaxies reaching a precision around 4% at 4

The computer side of the IMAGE project consists of a collection of Perl scripts that perform a variety of tasks; scripts are available to insert, update and delete data from the underlying Oracle database, download data from NCBI's Genbank and other sources, and generate data files for download by interested parties. Web scripts make up the tracking interface, and various tools available on the project web-site (image.llnl.gov) that provide a search interface to the database.

In this paper, we release accurate photometric redshifts for 1692 counterparts to Chandra sources in the central square degree of the Cosmic Evolution Survey (COSMOS) field. The availability of a large training set of spectroscopic redshifts that extends to faint magnitudes enabled photometric redshifts comparable to the highest quality results presently available for normal galaxies. We demonstrate that morphologically extended, faint X-ray sources without optical variability are more accurately described by a library of normal galaxies (corrected for emission lines) than by active galactic nucleus (AGN) dominated templates, even if these sources have AGN-like X-ray luminosities. Preselecting the library on the bases of the source properties allowed us to reach an accuracy \\sigma _{\\Delta z/(1+z_{spec})}\\sim 0.015 with a fraction of outliers of 5.8% for the entire Chandra-COSMOS sample. In addition, we release revised photometric redshifts for the 1735 optical counterparts of the XMM-detected sources over the entire 2 deg2 of COSMOS. For 248 sources, our updated photometric redshift differs from the previous release by Δz > 0.2. These changes are predominantly due to the inclusion of newly available deep H-band photometry (H AB = 24 mag). We illustrate once again the importance of a spectroscopic training sample and how an assumption about the nature of a source together, with the number and the depth of the available bands, influences the accuracy of the photometric redshifts determined for AGN. These considerations should be kept in mind when defining the observational strategies of upcoming large surveys targeting AGNs, such as eROSITA at X-ray energies and the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder Evolutionary Map of the Universe in the radio band. Based on observations by the Chandra X-ray Observatory Center, which is operated by the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory for and on behalf of the National Aeronautics Space Administration under

We present trigonometric parallax measurements and VRI photometry for more than 100 newly discovered SuperCOSMOS-RECONS (SCR) systems in the southern sky. Thousands of new red dwarfs, white dwarfs, and cool subdwarfs were revealed via searches of the SuperCOSMOS electronic archives of photographic plates. The nearest of these are added to our RECONS (Research Consortium On Nearby Stars, www.recons.org) astrometry program at the CTIO/SMARTS 0.9m, now in its 15th year, which has ~500 nearby stars and brown dwarfs being observed for parallax at a given time. Trigonometric parallax is one of the most time-intensive, but accurate, methods of distance determination and is most reliable for nearby stars, allowing our solar neighbors to set the standard for the primary rung in the cosmic distance ladder. However, many of these neighbors, particularly the M dwarfs, remain hidden due to their intrinsic faintness and cause us to have an incomplete understanding of local stellar populations. Roughly two-thirds of the SCR stars observed have parallaxes placing them within 25 pc, constituting a significant contribution to the existing solar community and moving us closer to a comprehensive census of the solar neighborhood. Highlights among the discoveries are the six new red dwarf systems within 10 pc, five new white dwarfs within 25 pc, and six nearby systems with proper motions less than 100 mas/yr, a proper motion regime in which very few nearby stars are known. Some of the SCR systems are compelling binaries containing unusual white dwarfs, very low mass stellar components, or degenerate brown dwarfs. We have valuable long-term datasets spanning more than a decade on many systems that allow us to search for unseen companions with masses as low as a few Jupiters. In sum, the SCR systems are crucial to our understanding of the stellar luminosity and mass functions in the Milky Way and beyond, provide key targets for astrophysical studies, and will be among the most important

The theme of this month's issue is "Images"--from early paintings and statuary to computer-generated design. Resources on the theme include Web sites, CD-ROMs and software, videos, books, and others. A page of reproducible activities is also provided. Features include photojournalism, inspirational Web sites, art history, pop art, and myths. (AEF)

Advance Praise for The Accelerating Universe "The Accelerating Universe is not only an informative book about modern cosmology. It is rich storytelling and, above all, a celebration of the human mind in its quest for beauty in all things." -Alan Lightman, author of Einstein's Dreams "This is a wonderfully lucid account of the extraordinary discoveries that have made the last years a golden period for observational cosmology. But Mario Livio has not only given the reader one clear explanation after another of what astronomers are up to, he has used them to construct a provocative argument for the importance of aesthetics in the development of science and for the inseparability of science, art, and culture." -Lee Smolin, author of The Life of the Cosmos "What a pleasure to read! An exciting, simple account of the universe revealed by modern astronomy. Beautifully written, clearly presented, informed by scientific and philosophical insights." -John Bahcall, Institute for Advanced Study "A book with charm, beauty, elegance, and importance. As authoritative a journey as can be taken through modern cosmology." -Allan Sandage, Observatories of the Carnegie Institution of Washington

Morphological changes were observed in the left ventricle of rat heart tissue from animals flown on the Cosmos 1887 biosatellite for 12.5 days. These tissues were compared to the synchronous and vivarium control hearts. While many normal myofibrils were observed, others exhibited ultrastructural alterations, i.e., damaged and irregular-shaped mitochondria and generalized myofibrillar edema. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) of the volume density data revealed a statistically significant increase in glycogen and a significant decrease in mitochondria compared to the synchronous and vivarium controls. Point counting indicated an increase in lipid and myeloid bodies and a decrease in microtubules, but these changes were not statistically significant. In addition, the flight animals exhibited some patchy loss of protofibrils (actin and myosin filaments) and some abnormal supercontracted myofibrils that were not seen in the controls. This study was undertaken to gain insight into the mechanistic aspects of cardiac changes in both animals and human beings as a consequence of space travel. Cardiac hypotrophy and fluid shifts have been observed after actual or simulated weightlessness and raise concerns about the functioning of the heart and circulatory system during and after travel in space.

We summarize currently-funded NASA activities in high energy astrophysics and cosmology, embodied in the NASA Physics of the Cosmos program, including updates on technology development and mission studies. The portfolio includes development of a space mission for measuring gravitational waves from merging supermassive black holes, currently envisioned as a collaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA) on its L3 mission and development of an X-ray observatory that will measure X-ray emission from the final stages of accretion onto black holes, currently envisioned as a NASA collaboration on ESA's Athena observatory. The portfolio also includes the study of cosmic rays and gamma ray photons resulting from a range of processes, of the physical process of inflation associated with the birth of the universe and of the nature of the dark energy that dominates the mass-energy of the modern universe. The program is supported by an analysis group called the PhysPAG that serves as a forum for community input and analysis and the talk will include a description of activities of this group.

Previous studies have shown that the changes seen in the bones of growing rats exposed to microgravity are due in part to changes that occur in the growth plate during spaceflight. In this study, growth plates of rats flown aboard Cosmos 1887 (12.5-day flight plus 53.5-h recovery at 1 g) were analyzed using light and electron microscopy and computerized planimetry. The proliferative zone of flight animals was found to be significantly (P less than or equal to 0.01) larger than that of controls, while the reserve and hypertrophic/calcification zones were significantly reduced. Flight animals also had more cells per column in the proliferative zone than did controls and less in the hypertrophic/calcification region. The total number of cells, however, was significantly greater in flight animals. No difference was found in perimeter or in shape factor, but area was significantly less in flight animals. Electron microscopy showed that collagen fibrils in flight animals were wider than in controls. Since the time required for a cell to cycle through the growth plate is 2-3 days at 1 g, the results reported here represent both the effects of exposure to microgravity and the initial stages of recovery from that exposure.

Joint Soviet-American measurements of the neutron component of space radiation (SR) were carried out during the flight of the Soviet biosatellite Cosmos-2044. Neutron flux densities and differential energy spectra were measured inside and on the external surface of the spacecraft. Three energy intervals were employed: thermal (En < or = 0.2 eV), resonance (0.2 eV < En < 1.0 MeV) and fast (En > or = 1.0 MeV) neutrons. The first two groups were measured with U.S. 6LiF detectors, while fast neutrons were recorded both by U.S. fission foils and Soviet nuclear emulsions. Estimations were made of the contributions to absorbed and equivalent doses from each neutron energy interval and a correlation was presented between fast neutron fluxes, measured outside the satellite, and the phase of solar activity (SA). Average dose equivalent rates of 0.018 and 0.14 mrem d-1 were measured for thermal and resonance neutrons, respectively, outside the spacecraft. The corresponding values for fast neutrons were 3.3 (U.S.) and 1.8 (U.S.S.R.) mrem d-1. Inside the spacecraft, a value of 3.5 mrem d-1 was found.

Joint Soviet-American measurements of the neutron component of space radiation (SR) were carried out during the flight of the Soviet biosatellite Cosmos-2044. Neutron flux densities and differential energy spectra were measured inside and on the external surface of the spacecraft. Three energy intervals were employed: thermal (E(sub n) less than or equal to 0.2 eV), resonance (0.2 eV less than E(sub n) less than 1.0 MeV) and fast (E(sub n) greater than or equal to 1.0 MeV) neutrons. The first two groups were measured with U.S. (6)LiF detectors, while fast neutrons were recorded both by U.S. fission foils and Soviet nuclear emulsions. Estimations were made of the contributions to absorbed and equivalent doses from each neutron energy interval and a correlation was presented between fast neutron fluxes, measured outside the satellite, and the phase of solar activity (SA). Average dose equivalent rates of 0.018 and 0.14 mrem d(exp -1) were measured for thermal and resonance neutrons, respectively, outside the spacecraft. The corresponding values for fast neutrons were 3.3 (U.S.) and 1.8 (U.S.S.R.) mrem d(exp -1). Inside the spacecraft, a value of 3.5 mrem d(exp -1) was found.

We investigate the ISM properties of 13 star-forming galaxies within the z∼ 2 COSMOS cluster. We show that the cluster members have [N ii]/Hα and [O iii]/Hβ emission-line ratios similar to z∼ 2 field galaxies, yet systematically different emission-line ratios (by ∼0.17 dex) from the majority of local star-forming galaxies. We find no statistically significant difference in the [N ii]/Hα and [O iii]/Hβ line ratios or ISM pressures among the z∼ 2 cluster galaxies and field galaxies at the same redshift. We show that our cluster galaxies have significantly larger ionization parameters (by up to an order of magnitude) than local star-forming galaxies. We hypothesize that these high ionization parameters may be associated with large specific star formation rates (SFRs; i.e., a large SFR per unit stellar mass). If this hypothesis is correct, then this relationship would have important implications for the geometry and/or the mass of stars contained within individual star clusters as a function of redshift.

We have studied the chemistry, hydroxyapatite crystal size, and maturational changes in bone and dentin from rats exposed to microgravity for 12 days in a Soviet biosatellite (Cosmos 1887). Bone ash was reduced in vertebrae (L5) but not in the non-weight-bearing calvaria or mandibles. All tissues had a relatively normal percentage composition of Ca, P, and Mg. Nevertheless, flight rat calvaria and vertebral tissues tended to exhibit lower Ca/P and higher Ca/Mg ratios that any of their weight-matched controls groups, and gradient density analysis (calvaria) indicated a strong shift to the fractions lower specific gravity that was commensurate with impaired rates of matrix-mineral maturation. X-ray diffraction data were confirmatory. Bone hydroxyapatite crystal growth in the mandibles of flight rats was preferentially altered in such a way as to reduce their size (C-axis dimension). But in the mandibular diastemal region devoid of muscle attachments, flight rat bone and dentin were normal with respect to the Ca, P, Mg, and Zn concentrations and Ca/P and Ca/Mg ratios of age-matched controls. These observations affirm the concept that while microgravity most adversely affects the maturation of newly formed matrix and mineral moieties in weight-bearing bone, such effects occur throughout the skeleton.

We report a sizable class of type 1 active galactic nuclei (AGNs) with unusually weak near-infrared (1-3 {mu}m) emission in the XMM-COSMOS type 1 AGN sample. The fraction of these 'hot-dust-poor' AGNs increases with redshift from 6% at low redshift (z < 2) to 20% at moderate high redshift (2 < z < 3.5). There is no clear trend of the fraction with other parameters: bolometric luminosity, Eddington ratio, black hole mass, and X-ray luminosity. The 3 {mu}m emission relative to the 1 {mu}m emission is a factor of 2-4 smaller than the typical Elvis et al. AGN spectral energy distribution (SED), which indicates a 'torus' covering factor of 2%-29%, a factor of 3-40 smaller than required by unified models. The weak hot dust emission seems to expose an extension of the accretion disk continuum in some of the source SEDs. We estimate the outer edge of their accretion disks to lie at (0.3-2.0) x 10{sup 4} Schwarzschild radii, {approx}10-23 times the gravitational stability radii. Formation scenarios for these sources are discussed.

The cellular compartmentalization of the cyclic AMP-receptor proteins in heart ventricular tissue obtained from rats flown on the Cosmos 1887 is determined. Photoaffinity labeling of soluble and particular cell fractions with a (32P)-8-azido analog of cyclic AMP is followed by electrophoretic separation of the proteins and by autoradiographic identification of the labeled isoforms of cAPK R subunits. It is shown that RII in the particulate subcellular fraction was significantly decreased in heart cells from rats in the flight group when compared to controls. Protein banding patterns in both the cytoplasmic fraction and in a fraction enriched in chromatin-bound proteins exhibited some variability in tissues of individual animals, but showed no changes that could be directly attributed to flight conditions. No significant change was apparent in the distribution of RI or RII cyclic AMP binding in the soluble fractions. It is inferred that the cardiac cell integrity or its protein content is not compromised under flight conditions.

The fast growing number of science data repositories is opening enormous possibilities to scientists all over the world. The emergence of citizen science projects is engaging in science discovery a large number of citizens globally. Astronomical research is now a possibility to anyone having a computer and some form of data access. This opens a very interesting and strategic possibility to engage large audiences in the making and understanding of science. On another perspective it would be only natural to imagine that soon enough data mining will be an active part of the academic path of university or even secondary schools students. The possibility is very exciting but the road not very promising. Even in the most developed nations, where all schools are equipped with modern ICT facilities the use of such possibilities is still a very rare episode. The Galileo Teacher Training Program GTTP, a legacy of IYA2009, is participating in some of the most emblematic projects funded by the European Commission and targeting modern tools, resources and methodologies for science teaching. One of this projects is Discover the Cosmos which is aiming to target this issue by empowering educators with the necessary skills to embark on this innovative path: teaching science while doing science.

Cosmos caudatus is widely used as a traditional medicine in Southeast Asia. C. caudatus has been reported as a rich source of bioactive compounds such as ascorbic acid, quercetin, and chlorogenic acid. Studies have shown that C. caudatus exhibits high anti-oxidant capacity and various medicinal properties, including anti-diabetic activity, anti-hypertensive properties, anti-inflammatory responses, bone-protective effect, and anti-microbial activity. This review aims to present the potential medicinal benefits of C. caudatus from the available scientific literature. We searched PubMed and ScienceDirect database for articles published from 1995 to January 2015. Overall, 15 articles related to C. caudatus and its medicinal benefits are reviewed. All these studies demonstrated that C. caudatus is effective, having demonstrated its anti-diabetic, anti-hypertensive, anti-inflammatory, bone-protective, anti-microbial, and anti-fungal activity in both in vitro and animal studies. None of the studies showed any negative effect of C. caudatus related to medicinal use. Currently available evidence suggests that C. caudatus has beneficial effects such as reducing blood glucose, reducing blood pressure, promoting healthy bone formation, and demonstrating anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial properties. However, human clinical trial is warranted. PMID:26929767

Pituitary levels of oxytocin (OT) and vasopressin (VP) were measured in rats exposed to 14 days of spaceflight (FLT) as well as in ground-based controls; one group synchronously maintained in flight-type cages with similar feeding schedules (SYN), one group in vivarium cages (VIV), and a group of tail suspended (SUS) animals. Flight rats had significantly less (p less than 0.05) pituitary OT and VP (4.48 +/- 0.31 and 7.48 +/- 0.53 mg hormone / mg protein, n = 5) than either the SYN (6.66 +/- 0..59 and 10.98 + 1.00, n = 5), VIV (6.14 +/- 0.40 and 10.98 +/- 0..81, n = 5) or SUS (5.73 +/- 0.24, n = 4) control groups, respectively. The reduced levels of pituitary OT and VP are similar to measurements made on rats from the previous 12.5 day Cosmos 1887 mission and appear to be a direct result of exposure to spaceflight.

The Physics of the Cosmos (PCOS) program incorporates cosmology, high-energy astrophysics, and fundamental physics projects aimed at addressing central questions about the nature of complex astrophysical phenomena such as black holes, neutron stars, dark energy, and gravitational waves. Its overarching theme is, How does the Universe work? PCOS includes a suite of operating (Chandra, Fermi, Planck, XMM-Newton, INTEGRAL) and future missions across the electromagnetic spectrum and beyond, which are in concept development and/or formulation. The PCOS program directly supports development of intermediate TRL (4-6) technology relevant to future missions through the Strategic Astrophysics Technology (SAT) program, as well as data analysis, theory, and experimental astrophysics via other R&A avenues (e.g., ADAP, ATP). The Einstein Fellowship is a vital and vibrant PCOS component funded by the program. PCOS receives community input via its Program Analysis Group, the PhysPAG (www.pcos.gsfc.nasa.gov/physpag.php), whose membership and meetings are open to the community at large. In this poster, we describe the detailed science questions addressed within PCOS, with special emphasis on future opportunities. Details about the PhysPAG operations and functions will be provided, as well as an update on future meetings.

Ulam raja (Cosmos caudatus) is used traditionally for improving blood circulation. In this study, it was found that ulam raja had extremely high antioxidant capacity of about 2,400 mg l-ascorbic acid equivalent antioxidant capacity (AEAC) per 100 g of fresh sample. Antioxidant peaks in extract of ulam raja were firstly characterized using free radical spiking test through high performance liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (MS). Upon reaction with 2,2'-azino-bis-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) free radicals, intensities of antioxidant peaks will be significantly reduced. HPLC/MS(n) was further applied to elucidate the chemical structures of antioxidant peaks characterized in the spiking test. More than twenty antioxidants were identified in ulam raja, and their chemical structures were proposed. The major antioxidants in ulam raja were attributed to a number of proanthocyanidins that existed as dimers through hexamers, quercetin glycosides, chlorogenic, neo-chlorogenic, crypto-chlorogenic acid and (+)-catching. High content of antioxidants antioxidants contained in ulam raja could be partly responsible for its ability to reduce oxidative stress. PMID:16087413

Background Cosmos caudatus is a local plant which has antioxidant properties and contains high calcium. It is also reported to be able to strengthen the bone. This report is an extension to previously published article in Evidence Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine (doi:10.1155/2012/817814). In this study, we determined the effectiveness of C. caudatus as an alternative treatment for osteoporosis due to post-menopause by looking at the dynamic and cellular paramaters of bone histomorphometry. Methods Forty female Wistar rats were divided into four groups i.e. sham operated, ovariectomized, ovariectomized treated with calcium 1% ad libitum and ovariectomized force-fed with 500 mg/kg C. caudatus extract. Treatment was given six days a week for eight weeks. Results Dynamic and cellular histomorphometry parameters were measured. C. caudatus increased double-labeled surface (dLS/BS), mineral appositional rate (MAR), osteoid volume (OV/BV) and osteoblast surface (Ob.S/BS). C. caudatus also gave better results compared to calcium 1% in the osteoid volume (OV/BV) parameter. Conclusions C. caudatus at the 500 mg/kg dose may be an alternative treatment in restoring bone damage that may occur in post-menopausal women. PMID:23800238

Cosmos caudatus is widely used as a traditional medicine in Southeast Asia. C. caudatus has been reported as a rich source of bioactive compounds such as ascorbic acid, quercetin, and chlorogenic acid. Studies have shown that C. caudatus exhibits high anti-oxidant capacity and various medicinal properties, including anti-diabetic activity, anti-hypertensive properties, anti-inflammatory responses, bone-protective effect, and anti-microbial activity. This review aims to present the potential medicinal benefits of C. caudatus from the available scientific literature. We searched PubMed and ScienceDirect database for articles published from 1995 to January 2015. Overall, 15 articles related to C. caudatus and its medicinal benefits are reviewed. All these studies demonstrated that C. caudatus is effective, having demonstrated its anti-diabetic, anti-hypertensive, anti-inflammatory, bone-protective, anti-microbial, and anti-fungal activity in both in vitro and animal studies. None of the studies showed any negative effect of C. caudatus related to medicinal use. Currently available evidence suggests that C. caudatus has beneficial effects such as reducing blood glucose, reducing blood pressure, promoting healthy bone formation, and demonstrating anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial properties. However, human clinical trial is warranted. PMID:26929767

The activities of /sup 234/U, /sup 235/U and /sup 238/U were measured in 24 individual rain samples and two composite rains collected at Fayetteville, Arkansas, during the months of March 1979 and March 1980 through May 1981. Uranium-234 and -235 were found to be highly enriched in several rain samples collected during the months of April and May 1980. Uranium-238 concentrations, on the other hand, were unusually high during the months of July, August and early September 1980. The concentrations of /sup 238/Pu and /sup 238/ /sup 240/Pu were measured in 76 individual rain samples and two composite rains which were collected at Fayetteville, Arkansas, during the period from February 1979 through December 1980. Plutonium-238 and plutonium-239,240 concentrations were found to be extremely high during the months of July, August and early September 1980. The anomalous uranium highly enriched in the light isotopes of uranium appears to have originated from the Soviet satellite Cosmos-954 which fell over Canada on 24 January 1978. The uranium fallout occurred just about the time Mount St. Helens erupted on 18 May 1980 and began to inject a large amount of natural uranium into the atmosphere. The pattern of variations of the concentrations of /sup 238/U in rain after the eruption of Mount St. Helens was found to be similar to that of plutonium isotopes.

Context. The ionizing Lyman continuum flux escaping from high-redshift galaxies into the intergalactic medium is a fundamental quantity to understand the physical processes involved in the reionization epoch. However, from an observational point of view, direct detections of HI ionizing photons at high redshifts are feasible for galaxies mainly in the interval z ~ 3-4. Aims: We have investigated a sample of star-forming galaxies at z ~ 3.3 to search for possible detections of Lyman continuum ionizing photons escaping from galaxy halos. Methods: We used deep ultraviolet (UV) imaging in the COSMOS field, obtained with the prime focus camera LBC at the LBT telescope, along with a catalogue of spectroscopic redshifts obtained by the VIMOS Ultra Deep Survey (VUDS) to build a sample of 45 galaxies at z ~ 3.3 with L> 0.5 L∗. We obtained deep LBC images of galaxies with spectroscopic redshifts in the interval 3.27 28%, but a detailed analysis of their properties reveals that, with the exception of two marginal detections (S/N ~ 2) in the U-band, all the other eight galaxies are most likely contaminated by the UV flux of low-redshift interlopers located close (in angular position) to the high-z targets. The average escape fraction derived from the stacking of the cleaned sample was constrained to fescrel < 2%. The implied hydrogen photoionization rate is a factor two lower than that needed to keep the intergalactic medium ionized at z ~ 3, as observed in the Lyman-α forest of high

In this talk, we present new results on number counts and luminosity function in the 0.5-2 and 2-10 keV bands, obtained in the Chandra COSMOS Legacy Survey. The COSMOS field is the largest (2 deg2) field with a complete coverage at any wavelength, and the Chandra COSMOS-Legacy survey uniformly covers the 1.7 deg2 COSMOS/HST field to ~160 ksec depth, with a total of 2.8 Ms exposure time. This triples the area of the earlier deep C-COSMOS survey (limiting flux ~3e-16 ergs/cm2/s in the 0.5-2 keV band), and together these two projects cover a total area of 2.2 deg2, yielding a sample of ~4100 X-ray sources, ~2300 of which have been detected in the new observations. We describe how the survey improves our knowledge in the galaxy-super massive black hole co-evolution.

Large-scale structures (LSSs) out to z < 3.0 are measured in the Cosmic Evolution Survey (COSMOS) using extremely accurate photometric redshifts (photoz). The Ks -band-selected sample (from Ultra-Vista) is comprised of 155,954 galaxies. Two techniques—adaptive smoothing and Voronoi tessellation—are used to estimate the environmental densities within 127 redshift slices. Approximately 250 statistically significant overdense structures are identified out to z = 3.0 with shapes varying from elongated filamentary structures to more circularly symmetric concentrations. We also compare the densities derived for COSMOS with those based on semi-analytic predictions for a ΛCDM simulation and find excellent overall agreement between the mean densities as a function of redshift and the range of densities. The galaxy properties (stellar mass, spectral energy distributions (SEDs), and star formation rates (SFRs)) are strongly correlated with environmental density and redshift, particularly at z < 1.0-1.2. Classifying the spectral type of each galaxy using the rest-frame b - i color (from the photoz SED fitting), we find a strong correlation of early-type galaxies (E-Sa) with high-density environments, while the degree of environmental segregation varies systematically with redshift out to z ~ 1.3. In the highest density regions, 80% of the galaxies are early types at z = 0.2 compared to only 20% at z = 1.5. The SFRs and the star formation timescales exhibit clear environmental correlations. At z > 0.8, the SFR density is uniformly distributed over all environmental density percentiles, while at lower redshifts the dominant contribution is shifted to galaxies in lower density environments. Based on observations with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, obtained at the Space Telescope Science Institute, which is operated by AURA Inc., under NASA contract NAS 5-26555, and the Spitzer Space Telescope, which is operated by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of

Based on the multi-band photometric data of the COSMOS (Cosmic Evolution Survey)/Ultra VISTA (Ultra-deep Visible and Infrared Survey Telescope for Astronomy) field, we have selected a mass-limited sample of galaxies with the redshifts of 0 < z < 3.5. And according to the rest-frame UVJ twocolor (U-V vs. V-J) criteria, we classify the sample galaxies into the star-forming galaxies (SFGs) and the quiescent galaxies (QGs) in different redshift bins. In the redshift range of 0 < z < 1.5, the fraction of QGs with a mass of M* > 1011Mʘ is greater than 70%. In the range of 0 < z < 3.5, the star formation rates (SFRs) of SFGs exhibit a strong main sequence (MS) relation with the stellar mass M*. For a fixed stellar mass M*, the galaxy SFR and specific SFR (sSFR) increase with the redshift, indicating that the SFGs at high redshifts are more active in star formation. Relative to the low-mass galaxies, the large-mass SFGs have a lower sSFR, implying that the growth of a low-mass galaxy is more relying on the star formation activity of itself. In combination with the data given by the other literature, it is found that for the galaxies at higher redshifts (2 < z < 8), the evolution of sSFR with the redshift becomes weak, and the evolutionary relation is sSFR∝ (1 + z)0.94±0.17.

Cuticular waxes coat all primary aboveground plant organs as a crucial adaptation to life on land. Accordingly, the properties of waxes have been studied in much detail, albeit with a strong focus on leaf and fruit waxes. Flowers have life histories and functions largely different from those of other organs, and it remains to be seen whether flower waxes have compositions and physiological properties differing from those on other organs. This work provides a detailed characterization of the petal waxes, using Cosmos bipinnatus as a model, and compares them with leaf and stem waxes. The abaxial petal surface is relatively flat, whereas the adaxial side consists of conical epidermis cells, rendering it approximately 3.8 times larger than the projected petal area. The petal wax was found to contain unusually high concentrations of C22 and C24 fatty acids and primary alcohols, much shorter than those in leaf and stem waxes. Detailed analyses revealed distinct differences between waxes on the adaxial and abaxial petal sides and between epicuticular and intracuticular waxes. Transpiration resistances equaled 3 × 104 and 1.5 × 104 s m−1 for the adaxial and abaxial surfaces, respectively. Petal surfaces of C. bipinnatus thus impose relatively weak water transport barriers compared with typical leaf cuticles. Approximately two-thirds of the abaxial surface water barrier was found to reside in the epicuticular wax layer of the petal and only one-third in the intracuticular wax. Altogether, the flower waxes of this species had properties greatly differing from those on vegetative organs. PMID:25413359

We present a study on physical properties for a large distant red galaxy (DRG) sample, using the K-selected multi-band photometry catalog of the COSMOS/UltraVISTA field and the CANDELS near-infrared data. Our sample includes 4485 DRGs with (J - K)AB > 1.16 and KAB < 23.4 mag, and 132 DRGs have HST/WFC3 morphological measurements. The results of nonparametric measurements of DRG morphology are consistent with our rest-frame UVJ color classification; quiescent DRGs are generally compact while star-forming DRGs tend to have extended structures. We find the star formation rate (SFR) and the stellar mass of star-forming DRGs present tight "main sequence" relations in all redshift bins. Moreover, the specific SFR (sSFR) of DRGs increases with redshift in all stellar mass bins and DRGs with higher stellar masses generally have lower sSFRs, which indicates that galaxies were much more active on average in the past, and star formation contributes more to the mass growth of low-mass galaxies than to high-mass galaxies. The infrared-derived SFR dominates the total SFR of DRGs which occupy the high-mass range, implying that the J - K color criterion effectively selects massive and dusty galaxies. DRGs with higher M* generally have redder (U - V)rest colors, and the (U - V)rest colors of DRGs become bluer at higher redshifts, suggesting high-mass galaxies have higher internal dust extinctions or older stellar ages and they evolve with time. Finally, we find that DRGs have different overlap among extremely red objects, BzK galaxies, IRAC-selected extremely red objects, and high-z ultraluminous infrared galaxies, indicating that DRGs are not a special population and they can also be selected by other color criteria.

We investigate the multiplicity of extragalactic sources detected by the Herschel Space Observatory in the COSMOS field. Using 3.6- and 24-μm catalogues, in conjunction with 250-μm data from Herschel, we seek to determine if a significant fraction of Herschel sources are composed of multiple components emitting at 250 μm. We use the XID+ code, using Bayesian inference methods to produce probability distributions of the possible contributions to the observed 250-μm flux for each potential component. The fraction of Herschel flux assigned to the brightest component is highest for sources with total 250-μm fluxes <45 mJy; however, the flux in the brightest component is still highest in the brightest Herschel sources. The faintest 250-μm sources (30-45 mJy) have the majority of their flux assigned to a single bright component; the second brightest component is typically significantly weaker, and contains the remainder of the 250-μm source flux. At the highest 250-μm fluxes (45-110 mJy), the brightest and second brightest components are assigned roughly equal fluxes, and together are insufficient to reach 100 per cent of the 250-μm source flux. This indicates that additional components are required, beyond the brightest two components, to reproduce the observed flux. 95 per cent of the sources in our sample have a second component that contains more than 10 per cent of the total source flux. Particularly for the brightest Herschel sources, assigning the total flux to a single source may overestimate the flux contributed by around 150 per cent.

In this Letter, we use a two-color (J - L) versus (V - J) selection criterion to search massive quiescent galaxy (QG) candidates at 2.5 {<=} z {<=} 4.0 in the CANDELS-COSMOS field. We construct an H{sub F160W}-selected catalog and complement it with public auxiliary data. We finally obtain 19 passive VJL-selected (hereafter pVJL) galaxies as the possible massive QG candidates at z {approx} 3 by several constrains. We find the sizes of our pVJL galaxies are on average three to four times smaller than those of local early-type galaxies (ETGs) with analogous stellar mass. The compact size of these z {approx} 3 galaxies can be modeled by assuming their formation at z{sub form} {approx} 4-6 according to the dissipative collapse of baryons. Up to z < 4, the mass-normalized size evolution can be described by r{sub e} {proportional_to}(1 + z){sup -1.0}. Low Sersic index and axis ratio, with median values n {approx}1.5 and b/a {approx} 0.65, respectively, indicate that most of the pVJL galaxies are disk-dominated. Despite large uncertainty, the inner region of the median mass profile of our pVJL galaxies is similar to those of QGs at 0.5 < z < 2.5 and local ETGs. It indicates that local massive ETGs have been formed according to an inside-out scenario: the compact galaxies at high redshift make up the cores of local massive ETGs and then build up the outskirts according to dissipationless minor mergers.

We explore the cosmic evolution of radio luminous active galactic nuclei (AGNs) with low radio powers (L {sub 1.4GHz} {approx}< 5 x 10{sup 25} W Hz{sup -1}) out to z = 1.3 using to date the largest sample of {approx}600 low-luminosity radio AGN at intermediate redshift drawn from the VLA-COSMOS survey. We derive the radio-luminosity function for these AGNs, and its evolution with cosmic time assuming two extreme cases: (1) pure luminosity and (2) pure density evolution. The former and latter yield L {sub *} {proportional_to} (1 + z){sup 0.8} {sup {+-}} {sup 0.1}, and {phi}{sub *} {proportional_to} (1 + z){sup 1.1} {sup {+-}} {sup 0.1}, respectively, both implying a fairly modest change in properties of low-radio-power AGNs since z = 1.3. We show that this is in stark contrast with the evolution of powerful (L {sub 1.4GHz} > 5 x 10{sup 25} W Hz{sup -1}) radio AGN over the same cosmic time interval, constrained using the 3CRR, 6CE, and 7CRS radio surveys by Willot et al. We demonstrate that this can be explained through differences in black hole fueling and triggering mechanisms, and a dichotomy in host galaxy properties of weak and powerful AGNs. Our findings suggest that high- and low-radio-power AGN activities are triggered in different stages during the formation of massive red galaxies. We show that weak radio AGN occur in the most massive galaxies already at z {approx} 1, and they may significantly contribute to the heating of their surrounding medium and thus inhibit gas accretion onto their host galaxies, as recently suggested for the 'radio mode' in cosmological models.

We investigate the multiplicity of extragalactic sources detected by the Herschel Space Observatory in the COSMOS field. Using 3.6- and 24-μm catalogues, in conjunction with 250-μm data from Herschel, we seek to determine if a significant fraction of Herschel sources are composed of multiple components emitting at 250 μm. We use the XID+ code, using Bayesian inference methods to produce probability distributions of the possible contributions to the observed 250-μm flux for each potential component. The fraction of Herschel flux assigned to the brightest component is highest for sources with total 250-μm fluxes <45 mJy; however, the flux in the brightest component is still highest in the brightest Herschel sources. The faintest 250-μm sources (30-45 mJy) have the majority of their flux assigned to a single bright component; the second brightest component is typically significantly weaker, and contains the remainder of the 250-μm source flux. At the highest 250-μm fluxes (45-110 mJy), the brightest and second brightest components are assigned roughly equal fluxes, and together are insufficient to reach 100 per cent of the 250-μm source flux. This indicates that additional components are required, beyond the brightest two components, to reproduce the observed flux. 95 per cent of the sources in our sample have a second component that contains more than 10 per cent of the total source flux. Particularly for the brightest Herschel sources, assigning the total flux to a single source may overestimate the flux contributed by around 150 per cent.

A frequent cellular response to organismal stress is the increase in ligand binding by beta-adrenergic receptors. The extracellular signal is amplified by intracellular increases in cyclic AMP and the ensuing activation of cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase (cAPK). The molecular mechanisms involve the binding of cyclic AMP to regulatory (R) subunits of cAPK, thus freeing the catalytic subunit for protein phosphorylation. This study was carried out to determine the cellular compartmentalization of the cyclic AMP-receptor proteins in heart ventricular tissue obtained from rats flown on the Cosmos 1887 mission. Photoaffinity labeling of soluble and particulate cell fractions with an [32P]-8-azido analog of cyclic AMP was followed by electrophoretic separation of the proteins and by autoradiographic identification of the labeled isoforms of cAPK R subunits. The results showed that RII in the particulate subcellular fraction was significantly decreased in heart cells from rats in the flight group when compared to controls. Protein banding patterns in both the cytoplasmic fraction and in a fraction enriched in chromatin-bound proteins showed some variability in tissues of individual animals, but exhibited no changes that could be directly attributed to flight conditions. No significant change was apparent in the distribution of RI or RII cyclic AMP binding in the soluble fractions. These findings indicate that the cardiac cell integrity or its protein content is not compromised under flight conditions. There is, however, what appears to be an adaptive molecular response which can be detected using microanalytical methods, indicating that a major hormone regulated mechanism may be affected during some phase of travel in space. PMID:1662483

We cross-match the two currently largest all-sky photometric catalogs—mid-infrared Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer and SuperCOSMOS scans of UKST/POSS-II photographic plates—to obtain a new galaxy sample that covers 3π steradians. In order to characterize and purify the extragalactic data set, we use external GAMA and Sloan Digital Sky Survey spectroscopic information to define quasar and star loci in multicolor space, aiding the removal of contamination from our extended source catalog. After appropriate data cleaning, we obtain a deep wide-angle galaxy sample that is approximately 95% pure and 90% complete at high Galactic latitudes. The catalog contains close to 20 million galaxies over almost 70% of the sky, outside the Zone of Avoidance and other confused regions, with a mean surface density of more than 650 sources per square degree. Using multiwavelength information from two optical and two mid-IR photometric bands, we derive photometric redshifts for all the galaxies in the catalog, using the ANNz framework trained on the final GAMA-II spectroscopic data. Our sample has a median redshift of {z}{med}=0.2, with a broad {dN}/{dz} reaching up to z > 0.4. The photometric redshifts have a mean bias of | δ z| ∼ {10}-3, a normalized scatter of σ z = 0.033, and less than 3% outliers beyond 3σ z . Comparison with external data sets shows no significant variation of photo-z quality with sky position. Together with the overall statistics, we also provide a more detailed analysis of photometric redshift accuracy as a function of magnitudes and colors. The final catalog is appropriate for “all-sky” three-dimensional (3D) cosmology to unprecedented depths, in particular through cross-correlations with other large-area surveys. It should also be useful for source preselection and identification in forthcoming surveys, such as TAIPAN or WALLABY.

A Gram-stain-negative, yellow, motile by gliding, filamentous bacterium, designated SR 2-06T, was isolated from surface-sterilized root of garden cosmos. 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis indicated that SR 2-06T was related most closely to Filimonas lacunae YT21T of the family Chitinophagaceae at a sequence similarity of 96.90 %, while levels of similarity to other related taxa were less than 93.08 %. Strain SR 2-06T exhibited similar features to F. lacunae in that it contained MK-7 as the major respiratory quinone, and iso-C15 : 1 G, iso-C15 : 0 and a summed feature consisting of C16 : 1ω6c and/or C16 : 1ω7c as the major fatty acids. However, strain SR 2-06T was distinguished from F. lacunae using a combination of physiological and biochemical properties. The cellular polar lipids were phosphatidylethanolamine, unknown aminophospholipids, unknown aminolipids, an unknown phospholipid and unidentified polar lipids. The DNA G+C content was 46.0 mol%. The phenotypic and phylogenetic evidence clearly indicates that strain SR 2-06T represents a novel species of the genus Filimonas, for which the name Filimonas endophytica sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is SR 2-06T ( = KCTC 42060T = JCM 19844T). PMID:26443022

Based on broadband/narrowband photometry and Keck DEIMOS spectroscopy, we report a redshift of z = 4.64{sup +0.06}{sub -0.08} for AzTEC/COSMOS 1, the brightest submillimeter galaxy (SMG) in the AzTEC/COSMOS field. In addition to the COSMOS-survey X-ray to radio data, we report observations of the source with Herschel/PACS (100, 160 {mu}m), CSO/SHARC II (350 {mu}m), and CARMA and PdBI (3 mm). We do not detect CO(5 {yields} 4) line emission in the covered redshift ranges, 4.56-4.76 (PdBI/CARMA) and 4.94-5.02 (CARMA). If the line is within this bandwidth, this sets 3{sigma} upper limits on the gas mass to {approx}<8 x 10{sup 9} M{sub sun} and {approx}<5 x 10{sup 10} M{sub sun}, respectively (assuming similar conditions as observed in z {approx} 2 SMGs). This could be explained by a low CO-excitation in the source. Our analysis of the UV-IR spectral energy distribution of AzTEC 1 shows that it is an extremely young ({approx}<50 Myr), massive (M{sub *} {approx} 10{sup 11} M{sub sun}), but compact ({approx}<2 kpc) galaxy, forming stars at a rate of {approx}1300 M{sub sun} yr{sup -1}. Our results imply that AzTEC 1 is forming stars in a 'gravitationally bound' regime in which gravity prohibits the formation of a superwind, leading to matter accumulation within the galaxy and further generations of star formation.

Male rats that were flown on Cosmos-1514 during their prenatal days 13 through 18 were investigated. The animals were sacrificed when they reached sexual maturity. Preparations were made of their testes for cytogenetic analysis: spermatocytes were at the stages of diakinesis--metaphase 1. The flown rats had 0.9% reciprocal translocations while the ground-based synchronous controls showed 0.5%. Exposure to space flight factors in combination had a mutagenic effect on gonocytes. However, the adverse effect of microgravity per se was not demonstrated unambiguously. PMID:3437735

We quantify the importance of the mechanical energy released by radio galaxies inside galaxy groups. We use scaling relations to estimate the mechanical energy released by 16 radio-active galactic nuclei located inside X-ray-detected galaxy groups in the COSMOS field. By comparing this energy output to the host groups' gravitational binding energy, we find that radio galaxies produce sufficient energy to unbind a significant fraction of the intragroup medium. This unbinding effect is negligible in massive galaxy clusters with deeper potential wells. Our results correctly reproduce the breaking of self-similarity observed in the scaling relation between entropy and temperature for galaxy groups.

Measurements of X-ray scaling laws are critical for improving cosmological constraints derived with the halo mass function and for understanding the physical processes that govern the heating and cooling of the intracluster medium. In this paper, we use a sample of 206 X-ray-selected galaxy groups to investigate the scaling relation between X-ray luminosity (L X) and halo mass (M 200) where M 200 is derived via stacked weak gravitational lensing. This work draws upon a broad array of multi-wavelength COSMOS observations including 1.64 degrees2 of contiguous imaging with the Advanced Camera for Surveys to a limiting magnitude of I F814W = 26.5 and deep XMM-Newton/Chandra imaging to a limiting flux of 1.0 × 10-15 erg cm-2 s-1 in the 0.5-2 keV band. The combined depth of these two data sets allows us to probe the lensing signals of X-ray-detected structures at both higher redshifts and lower masses than previously explored. Weak lensing profiles and halo masses are derived for nine sub-samples, narrowly binned in luminosity and redshift. The COSMOS data alone are well fit by a power law, M 200 vprop (L X)α, with a slope of α = 0.66 ± 0.14. These results significantly extend the dynamic range for which the halo masses of X-ray-selected structures have been measured with weak gravitational lensing. As a result, tight constraints are obtained for the slope of the M-L X relation. The combination of our group data with previously published cluster data demonstrates that the M-L X relation is well described by a single power law, α = 0.64 ± 0.03, over two decades in mass, M 200 ~ 1013.5-1015.5 h -1 72 M sun. These results are inconsistent at the 3.7σ level with the self-similar prediction of α = 0.75. We examine the redshift dependence of the M-L X relation and find little evidence for evolution beyond the rate predicted by self-similarity from z ~ 0.25 to z ~ 0.8. Based on observations with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, obtained at the Space Telescope

The secretory capacity of growth hormone (GH) and prolactin (PRL) cells prepared from rats flown in space on the 12.5 day mission of Cosmos 1887 and the 14 day mission of Cosmos 2044 was evaluated in several post-flight tests on Earth. The results showed statistically significant and repeatable decrements in hormone release, especially when biological assays (rather than immunological assays) were used in the tests. Significant and repeatable intracellular changes in GH cells from the flight animals were also found; most important were increases in the GH-specific cytoplasmic staining intensities and cytoplasmic areas occupied by hormore. Tail suspension of rats for 14 days, an established model for mimicking musculo-skeletal changes seen in spaceflown rats, results in some changes in GH and PRL cell function that were similar to those from spaceflown animals. Our results add to a growing body of data that described deconditioning of physiological systems in spaceflight and provide insights into the time frame that might be required for readaptation of the GH/PRL cell system upon return to Earth.

Large-scale prospective cohort studies are invaluable in epidemiology, but they are increasingly difficult and costly to establish and follow-up. More efficient methods for recruitment, data collection and follow-up are essential if such studies are to remain feasible with limited public and research funds. Here, we discuss how these challenges were addressed in the UK COSMOS cohort study where fixed budget and limited time frame necessitated new approaches to consent and recruitment between 2009-2012. Web-based e-consent and data collection should be considered in large scale observational studies, as they offer a streamlined experience which benefits both participants and researchers and save costs. Commercial providers of register and marketing data, smartphones, apps, email, social media, and the internet offer innovative possibilities for identifying, recruiting and following up cohorts. Using examples from UK COSMOS, this article sets out the dos and don’ts for today's cohort studies and provides a guide on how best to take advantage of new technologies and innovative methods to simplify logistics and minimise costs. Thus a more streamlined experience to the benefit of both research participants and researchers becomes achievable. PMID:26147611

The Earth and life have evolved in tandem; It is impossible to separate the two over most of geologic time. Geological and geochemical processes create and define the conditions necessary for life. In turn, life has shaped geological processes in ways that are understood, and ways that are not yet understood. The reciprocal interaction between the planet and its inhabitants has driven changes in the molecules, metabolisms, and morphologies of terrean organisms. Today, with the emergence of complete genome sequences and tools from molecular biology, we are now better able, more than ever before, to tell stories of how we came to be, on a planet and in a cosmos that has both nourished us and (from time to time) threatened to extinguish us. The stories to be told in this talk combine information from the geological and paleontological records, analysis of genome sequence data, and experiments that resurrect ancient, extinct life forms for study in the laboratory. The talk will emphasize the non-recurring, progressive feature of the dance between Earth and Life. We will show how the emergence of humans was influenced by the environment, and how humans placed their irreversible mark on the genes of organisms that they touched. We will show how the global environmental crisis that began in the Oligocene irreversibly transformed the plant and animal kingdoms. We will proceed back to the Cretaceous, to explore how plants and dinosaurs influenced each other, and the genomes of surviving fungus and flies. From there we will go to the Jurassic, as the first placental mammals reconstructed their reproductive systems in response to the planetary changes. We will ask how cosmic events, from asteroids to supernova, may have influenced life on Earth. We will ask what consequential features of life that we see around us might be unique to Earth, and what features might be found universally in life elsewhere. The talk will also review some of the methodological issues associated

We used the observations carried out by XMM in the COSMOS field over 3.5 yr to study the long term variability of a large sample of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) (638 sources) in a wide range of redshifts (0.1 < z < 3.5) and X-ray luminosities (10{sup 41} < L {sub 0.5-10} <10{sup 45.5}). Both a simple statistical method to assess the significance of variability and the Normalized Excess Variance (σ{sub rms}{sup 2}) parameter were used to obtain a quantitative measurement of the variability. Variability is found to be prevalent in most AGNs, whenever we have good statistics to measure it, and no significant differences between type 1 and type 2 AGNs were found. A flat (slope –0.23 ± 0.03) anti-correlation between σ{sub rms}{sup 2} and X-ray luminosity is found when all significantly variable sources are considered together. When divided into three redshift bins, the anti-correlation becomes stronger and evolving with z, with higher redshift AGNs being more variable. We prove, however, that this effect is due to the pre-selection of variable sources: when considering all of the sources with an available σ{sub rms}{sup 2} measurement, the evolution in redshift disappears. For the first time, we were also able to study long term X-ray variability as a function of M {sub BH} and Eddington ratio for a large sample of AGNs spanning a wide range of redshifts. An anti-correlation between σ{sub rms}{sup 2} and M {sub BH} is found, with the same slope of anti-correlation between σ{sub rms}{sup 2} and X-ray luminosity, suggesting that the latter may be a by-product of the former. No clear correlation is found between σ{sub rms}{sup 2} and the Eddington ratio in our sample. Finally, no correlation is found between the X-ray σ{sub rms}{sup 2} and optical variability.

In the theory of structure formation, galaxies are biased tracers of the underlying matter density field. The statistical relation between galaxy and matter density field is commonly referred to as galaxy bias. In this paper, we test the linear bias model with weak-lensing and galaxy clustering measurements in the 2 deg{sup 2} COSMOS field. We estimate the bias of galaxies between redshifts z = 0.2 and z = 1 and over correlation scales between R = 0.2 h{sup -1} Mpc and R = 15 h{sup -1} Mpc. We focus on three galaxy samples, selected in flux (simultaneous cuts I{sub 814W} < 26.5 and K{sub s} < 24) and in stellar mass (10{sup 9} < M{sub *} < 10{sup 10} h{sup -2} M{sub Sun} and 10{sup 10} < M{sub *} < 10{sup 11} h{sup -2} M{sub Sun }). At scales R > 2 h{sup -1} Mpc, our measurements support a model of bias increasing with redshift. The Tinker et al. fitting function provides a good fit to the data. We find the best-fit mass of the galaxy halos to be log (M{sub 200}/h{sup -1} M{sub Sun }) = 11.7{sup +0.6}{sub -1.3} and log (M{sub 200}/h{sup -1} M{sub Sun }) = 12.4{sup +0.2}{sub -2.9}, respectively, for the low and high stellar-mass samples. In the halo model framework, bias is scale dependent with a change of slope at the transition scale between the one and the two halo terms. We detect a scale dependence of bias with a turndown at scale R = 2.3 {+-} 1.5 h{sup -1} Mpc, in agreement with previous galaxy clustering studies. We find no significant amount of stochasticity, suggesting that a linear bias model is sufficient to describe our data. We use N-body simulations to quantify both the amount of cosmic variance and systematic errors in the measurement.

We present deep 450μm and 850μm observations of a large, uniformly covered 394arcmin2 area in the Cosmic Evolution Survey (COSMOS) field obtained with the Scuba-2 instrument on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT). We achieve root-mean-square noise values of σ450=4.13mJy and σ850=0.80mJy. The differential and cumulative number counts are presented and compared to similar previous works. Individual point sources are identified at >3.6σ significance, a threshold corresponding to a 3-5% sample contamination rate. We identify 78 sources at 450μm and 99 at 850μm, with flux densities S450=13-37mJy and S850=2-16mJy. Only 62-76% of 450μm sources are 850μm detected and 61-81% of 850μm sources are 450μm detected. The positional uncertainties at 450μm are small (1-2.5 arcsec) and therefore allow a precise identification of multiwavelength counterparts without reliance on detection at 24μm or radio wavelengths; we find that only 44% of 450μm sources and 60% of 850μm sources have 24μm or radio counterparts. 450μm selected galaxies peak at =1.95+/-0.19 and 850μm selected galaxies peak at =2.16+/-0.11. The two samples occupy similar parameter space in redshift and luminosity, while their median SED peak wavelengths differ by ~20-50μm (translating to ΔTdust=8-12K, where 450μm selected galaxies are warmer). The similarities of the 450μm and 850μm populations, yet lack of direct overlap between them, suggests that submillimetre surveys conducted at any single far-infrared wavelength will be significantly incomplete (>~30%) at censusing infrared-luminous star formation at high z. (8 data files).

To provide the census of the sources contributing to the X-ray background peak above 10 keV, Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) is performing extragalactic surveys using a three-tier “wedding cake” approach. We present the NuSTAR survey of the COSMOS field, the medium sensitivity, and medium area tier, covering 1.7 deg2 and overlapping with both Chandra and XMM-Newton data. This survey consists of 121 observations for a total exposure of ˜3 Ms. To fully exploit these data, we developed a new detection strategy, carefully tested through extensive simulations. The survey sensitivity at 20% completeness is 5.9, 2.9, and 6.4 × 10-14 {erg} {{cm}}-2 {{{s}}}-1 in the 3-24, 3-8, and 8-24 keV bands, respectively. By combining detections in 3 bands, we have a sample of 91 NuSTAR sources with 1042-1045.5 {erg} {{{s}}}-1 luminosities and redshift z = 0.04-2.5. Thirty-two sources are detected in the 8-24 keV band with fluxes ˜100 times fainter than sources detected by Swift-BAT. Of the 91 detections, all but 4 are associated with a Chandra and/or XMM-Newton point-like counterpart. One source is associated with an extended lower energy X-ray source. We present the X-ray (hardness ratio and luminosity) and optical-to-X-ray properties. The observed fraction of candidate Compton-thick active galactic nuclei measured from the hardness ratio is between 13%-20%. We discuss the spectral properties of NuSTAR J100259+0220.6 (ID 330) at z = 0.044, with the highest hardness ratio in the entire sample. The measured column density exceeds 1024 cm-2, implying the source is Compton-thick. This source was not previously recognized as such without the >10 keV data.

Context. Groups of galaxies are a common environment, bridging the gap between starforming field galaxies and quiescent cluster galaxies. Within groups secular processes could be at play, contributing to the observed strong decrease of star formation with cosmic time in the global galaxy population. Aims: We took advantage of the wealth of information provided by the first 10 000 galaxies of the zCOSMOS-bright survey and its group catalogue to study in detail the complex interplay between group environment and galaxy properties. Methods: The classical indicator Fblue, i.e., the fraction of blue galaxies, proved to be a simple but powerful diagnostic tool. We studied its variation for different luminosity and mass selected galaxy samples, divided as to define groups/field/isolated galaxy subsamples. Results: Using rest-frame evolving B-band volume-limited samples, the groups galaxy population exhibits significant blueing as redshift increases, but maintains a systematic difference (a lower Fblue) with respect to the global galaxy population, and an even larger difference with respect to the isolated galaxy population. However moving to mass selected samples it becomes apparent that such differences are largely due to the biased view imposed by the B-band luminosity selection, being driven by the population of lower mass, bright blue galaxies for which we miss the redder, equally low mass, counterparts. By carefully focusing the analysis on narrow mass bins such that mass segregation becomes negligible we find that only for the lowest mass bin explored, i.e., log ({\\cal M}*/{\\cal M}⊙) ≤ 10.6 , does a significant residual difference in color remain as a function of environment, while this difference becomes negligible toward higher masses. Conclusions: Our results indicate that red galaxies of mass log ({\\cal M}*/{\\cal M}⊙) ≥ 10.8 are already in place at z 1 and do not exhibit any strong environmental dependence, possibly originating from so-called nature

We present the results of H I spectral stacking analysis of Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT) observations targeting the Cosmological Evolution Survey (COSMOS) field. The GMRT data cube contains 474 field galaxies with redshifts known from the zCOSMOS-bright 10 k catalogue. Spectra for the galaxies are co-added and the stacked spectrum allows us to make a ˜3σ measurement of the average H I mass. Using this average H I mass, along with the integral optical B-band luminosity of the galaxies and the luminosity density of the COSMOS field, a volume normalization is applied to obtain the cosmic H I mass density (ΩH I). We find a cosmic H I mass density of ΩH I = (0.42 ± 0.16) × 10-3 at z ˜ 0.37, which is the highest redshift measurement of ΩH I ever made using H I spectral stacking. The value we obtained for ΩH I at z ˜ 0.37 is consistent with that measured from large blind 21-cm surveys at z = 0, as well as measurements from other H I stacking experiments at lower redshifts. Our measurement, in conjunction with earlier measurements, indicates that there has been no significant evolution of H I gas abundance over the last 4 Gyr. A weighted mean of ΩH I from all 21-cm measurements at redshifts z ≲ 0.4 gives ΩH I = (0.35 ± 0.01) × 10-3. The ΩH I measured (from H I 21-cm emission measurements) at z ≲ 0.4 is, however, approximately half that measured from damped Lyman-α absorption (DLA) systems at z ≳ 2. Deeper surveys with existing and upcoming instruments will be critical to understand the evolution of ΩH I in the redshift range intermediate between z ˜ 0.4 and the range probed by DLA observations.

A parallel version of the MOPEX software, which generates mosaics of infrared astronomical images acquired by the Spitzer Space Telescope, extends the capabilities of the prior serial version. In the parallel version, both the input image space and the output mosaic space are divided among the available parallel processors. This is the only software that performs the point-source detection and the rejection of spurious imaging effects of cosmic rays required by Spitzer scientists. This software includes components that implement outlier-detection algorithms that can be fine-tuned for a particular set of image data by use of a number of adjustable parameters. This software has been used to construct a mosaic of the Spitzer Infrared Array Camera Shallow Survey, which comprises more than 17,000 exposures in four wavelength bands from 3.6 to 8 m and spans a solid angle of about 9 square degrees. When this software was executed on 32 nodes of the 1,024-processor Cosmos cluster computer at NASA s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a speedup of 8.3 was achieved over the serial version of MOPEX. The performance is expected to improve dramatically once a true parallel file system is installed on Cosmos.

We investigate morphological properties of 61 Lyα emitters (LAEs) at z = 4.86 identified in the COSMOS field, based on Hubble Space Telescope Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) imaging data in the F814W band. Out of the 61 LAEs, we find the ACS counterparts for 54 LAEs. Eight LAEs show double-component structures with a mean projected separation of 0.″63 (˜4.0 kpc at z = 4.86). Considering the faintness of these ACS sources, we carefully evaluate their morphological properties, that is, size and ellipticity. While some of them are compact and indistinguishable from the point-spread function (PSF) half-light radius of 0.″07 (˜0.45 kpc), the others are clearly larger than the PSF size and spatially extended up to 0.″3 (˜1.9 kpc). We find that the ACS sources show a positive correlation between ellipticity and size and that the ACS sources with large size and round shape are absent. Our Monte Carlo simulation suggests that the correlation can be explained by (1) the deformation effects via PSF broadening and shot noise or (2) the source blending in which two or more sources with small separation are blended in our ACS image and detected as a single elongated source. Therefore, the 46 single-component LAEs could contain the sources that consist of double (or multiple) components with small spatial separation (i.e., ≲0.″3 or 1.9 kpc). Further observation with high angular resolution at longer wavelengths (e.g., rest-frame wavelengths of ≳4000 Å) is inevitable to decipher which interpretation is adequate for our LAE sample. Based on observations with NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, obtained at the Space Telescope Science Institute, which is operated by AURA, Inc., under NASA contract NAS 5-26555, and also based on data collected at Subaru Telescope, which is operated by the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan.

We follow the galaxy stellar mass assembly by morphological and spectral type in the COSMOS 2 deg2 field. We derive the stellar mass functions and stellar mass densities from z = 2 to z = 0.2 using 196,000 galaxies selected at F 3.6 μm > 1 μJy with accurate photometric redshifts (σ_{(z_phot-z_spec)/(1+z_spec)}=0.008 at i + < 22.5). Using a spectral classification, we find that z ~ 1 is an epoch of transition in the stellar mass assembly of quiescent galaxies. Their stellar mass density increases by 1.1 dex between z = 1.5-2 and z = 0.8-1 (Δt ~ 2.5 Gyr), but only by 0.3 dex between z = 0.8-1 and z ~ 0.1 (Δt ~ 6 Gyr). Then, we add the morphological information and find that 80%-90% of the massive quiescent galaxies (log M ˜ 11) have an elliptical morphology at z < 0.8. Therefore, a dominant mechanism links the shutdown of star formation and the acquisition of an elliptical morphology in massive galaxies. Still, a significant fraction of quiescent galaxies present a Spi/Irr morphology at low mass (40%-60% at log M˜ 9.5), but this fraction is smaller than predicted by semi-analytical models using a "halo quenching" recipe. We also analyze the evolution of star-forming galaxies and split them into "intermediate activity" and "high activity" galaxies. We find that the most massive "high activity" galaxies end their high star formation rate phase first. Finally, the space density of massive star-forming galaxies becomes lower than the space density of massive elliptical galaxies at z < 1. As a consequence, the rate of "wet mergers" involved in the formation of the most massive ellipticals must decline very rapidly at z < 1, which could explain the observed slow down in the assembly of these quiescent and massive sources. Based on observations with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, obtained at the Space Telescope Science Institute, which is operated by AURA Inc., under NASA contract NAS 5-26555. Also based on observations made with the Spitzer Space Telescope

Aims: Upcoming large area sky surveys like Euclid and eROSITA, which are dedicated to studying the role of dark energy in the expansion history of the Universe and the three-dimensional mass distribution of matter, crucially depend on accurate photometric redshifts. The identification of variable sources, such as active galactic nuclei (AGNs), and the achievable redshift accuracy for varying objects are important in view of the science goals of the Euclid and eROSITA missions. Methods: We probe AGN optical variability for a large sample of X-ray-selected AGNs in the XMM-COSMOS field, using the multi-epoch light curves provided by the Pan-STARRS1 (PS1) 3π and Medium Deep Field surveys. To quantify variability we employed a simple statistic to estimate the probability of variability and the normalized excess variance to measure the variability amplitude. Utilizing these two variability parameters, we defined a sample of varying AGNs for every PS1 band. We investigated the influence of variability on the calculation of photometric redshifts by applying three different input photometry sets for our fitting procedure. For each of the five PS1 bands gP1, rP1, iP1, zP1, and yP1, we chose either the epochs minimizing the interval in observing time, the median magnitude values, or randomly drawn light curve points to compute the redshift. In addition, we derived photometric redshifts using PS1 photometry extended by GALEX/IRAC bands. Results: We find that the photometry produced by the 3π survey is sufficient to reliably detect variable sources provided that the fractional variability amplitude is at least ~3%. Considering the photometric redshifts of variable AGNs, we observe that minimizing the time spacing of the chosen points yields superior photometric redshifts in terms of the percentage of outliers (33%) and accuracy (0.07), outperforming the other two approaches. Drawing random points from the light curve gives rise to typically 57% of outliers and an accuracy of

The present study was conducted to determine the effect of air (AD), oven (OD) and freeze drying (FD) on the free radical scavenging activity and total phenolic content (TPC) of Cosmos caudatus and the effect of storage time by the comparison with a fresh sample (FS). Among the three drying methods that were used, AD resulted in the highest free radical scavenging activity against 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) (IC50 = 0.0223 mg/mL) and total phenolic content (27.4 g GAE/100 g), whereas OD produced the lowest scavenging activity and TPC value. After three months of storage, the dried samples showed a high and consistent free radical scavenging activity when compared to stored fresh material. The drying methods could preserve the quality of C. caudatus during storage and the stability of its bioactive components can be maintained. PMID:26784876

A new model of the mid-latitude ionospheric trough is developed on the base of Intercosmos-19 and Cosmos-900 satellites data (over 1500 orbits). It is valid for the nighttime (18 to 06 MLT), winter and equinox, K_p-indices from 0 to 8. It covers the topside ionosphere up to 1000 km and describes the trough minimum position Lambda_T depending on longitude lambda, altitudeh , local magnetic time MLT and K_p-index. Model is presented in the analytical form, as well as a nomogram versus MLT and K_p and a nighttime segment of a circle (in the polar coordinate system) with the radius depending on the K_p-index. The effective K_p-index taken for preceding 4.4 hours is used in the model. Agreement between the model and other data on the trough and the equatorial boundary of the auroral oval is discussed.

The effects of space flight factors, in particular the heavy ion component of cosmic rays, on dormant stages of life forms were investigated as part of the Biobloc 4 experiment flown aboard the Cosmos 1129 biosatellite. Artemia cysts and seeds of tobacco and lettuce plants were placed in tubes and in monolayers sandwiched between layers of visual particle track detectors. Although Artemia cysts exposed in the dry state did not differ from ground controls, hydrated cysts exhibited a slight decrease in hatchability and reduced (C-14)O2 incorporation and protein and nucleic acid synthesis. For cysts held in the monolayers, hits by HZE particles were observed to stimulate emergence, hatching and survival. Higher proportions of chromosomal aberrations were found in lettuce seeds hit by HZE particles, while space flight produced a stimulatory effect on both germination rate and abnormality frequency in both hit and nonhit tobacco seeds. 9 references.

The fraction of active galactic nucleus (AGN) luminosity obscured by dust and re-emitted in the mid-IR is critical for understanding AGN evolution, unification, and parsec-scale AGN physics. For unobscured (Type 1) AGNs, where we have a direct view of the accretion disk, the dust covering factor can be measured by computing the ratio of re-processed mid-IR emission to intrinsic nuclear bolometric luminosity. We use this technique to estimate the obscured AGN fraction as a function of luminosity and redshift for 513 Type 1 AGNs from the XMM-COSMOS survey. The re-processed and intrinsic luminosities are computed by fitting the 18 band COSMOS photometry with a custom spectral energy distribution fitting code, which jointly models emission from hot dust in the AGN torus, from the accretion disk, and from the host galaxy. We find a relatively shallow decrease of the luminosity ratio as a function of L{sub bol}, which we interpret as a corresponding decrease in the obscured fraction. In the context of the receding torus model, where dust sublimation reduces the covering factor of more luminous AGNs, our measurements require a torus height that increases with luminosity as h ∝ L{sub bol}{sup 0.3-0.4}. Our obscured-fraction-luminosity relation agrees with determinations from Sloan Digital Sky Survey censuses of Type 1 and Type 2 quasars and favors a torus optically thin to mid-IR radiation. We find a much weaker dependence of the obscured fraction on 2-10 keV luminosity than previous determinations from X-ray surveys and argue that X-ray surveys miss a significant population of highly obscured Compton-thick AGNs. Our analysis shows no clear evidence for evolution of the obscured fraction with redshift.

Ion densities Ni and electron temperatures Te measured on board Cosmos 900 satellite (launched at March 30, 1977, into near-polar circular orbit: i=83°, h=500km, orbital period=94min) are used to study the behavior of the ionosphere during the prestorm, initial, and main phases of the magnetic storm of December 1-2, 1977. The spatial resolution of the measurement was <=0.3° latitude for Te and <=0.1° latitude for Ni. During this period, 27 orbits were recorded in the onboard large-storage memory. This enabled detailed study of the positions and latitude profiles of midlatitude ionospheric trough and subauroral electron temperature enhancement (SETE) in the midnight local time sector. Simultaneous proton density data measured on the high-altitude satellites ``Prognoz 5'' and ``Prognoz 6'' confirm that the poleward boundary of the Te peak corresponds to the ionospheric magnetic field projection of the high-altitude plasmapause density ``knee.'' During the main phase of a geomagnetic storm the polar edge of the SETE becomes very steep. It coincides with an equally steep poleward edge of the midlatitude ionospheric trough and with the position of the newly forming density gradient of the high-altitude plasmapause. The sequence of Cosmos 900 observations clearly shows how the nighttime midlatitude ionospheric trough fills up as well as how the subauroral electron temperature enhancement and the outer layers of the plasmasphere are eroded during a geomagnetic storm. These results shed new light on the formation of the plasmapause in the postmidnight sector and on the time-dependent electric field distribution in the nightside sector before and during a geomagnetic storm.

We present the result of our low-luminosity quasar survey in the redshift range of 4.5 {approx}< z {approx}< 5.5 in the COSMOS field. Using the COSMOS photometric catalog, we selected 15 quasar candidates with 22 < i' < 24 at z {approx} 5 that are {approx}3 mag fainter than the Sloan Digital Sky Survey quasars in the same redshift range. We obtained optical spectra for 14 of the 15 candidates using FOCAS on the Subaru Telescope and did not identify any low-luminosity type-1 quasars at z {approx} 5, while a low-luminosity type-2 quasar at z {approx} 5.07 was discovered. In order to constrain the faint end of the quasar luminosity function at z {approx} 5, we calculated the 1{sigma} confidence upper limits of the space density of type-1 quasars. As a result, the 1{sigma} confidence upper limits on the quasar space density are {Phi} < 1.33 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -7} Mpc{sup -3} mag{sup -1} for -24.52 < M{sub 1450} < -23.52 and {Phi} < 2.88 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -7} Mpc{sup -3} mag{sup -1} for -23.52 < M{sub 1450} < -22.52. The inferred 1{sigma} confidence upper limits of the space density are then used to provide constraints on the faint-end slope and the break absolute magnitude of the quasar luminosity function at z {approx} 5. We find that the quasar space density decreases gradually as a function of redshift at low luminosity (M{sub 1450} {approx} -23), being similar to the trend found for quasars with high luminosity (M{sub 1450} < -26). This result is consistent with the so-called downsizing evolution of quasars seen at lower redshifts.

We present a search for FR I radio galaxies between 1 < z < 2 in the COSMOS field. In absence of spectroscopic redshift measurements, the selection method is based on multiple steps which make use of both radio and optical constraints. The basic assumptions are that (1) the break in radio power between low-power FR Is and the more powerful FR IIs does not change with redshift, and (2) that the photometric properties of the host galaxies of low-power radio galaxies in the distant universe are similar to those of FR IIs in the same redshift bin, as is the case for nearby radio galaxies. We describe the results of our search, which yields 37 low-power radio galaxy candidates that are possibly FR Is. We show that a large fraction of these low-luminosity radio galaxies display a compact radio morphology that does not correspond to the FR I morphological classification. Furthermore, our objects are apparently associated with galaxies that show clear signs of interactions, at odds with the typical behavior observed in low-z FR I hosts. The compact radio morphology might imply that we are observing intrinsically small and possibly young objects that will eventually evolve into the giant FR Is we observe in the local universe. One of the objects appears as pointlike in Hubble Space Telescope (HST) images. This might belong to a population of FR I-QSOs, which however would represent a tiny minority of the overall population of high-z FR Is. As for the local FR Is, a large fraction of our objects are likely to be associated with groups or clusters, making them 'beacons' for high-redshift clusters of galaxies. Our search for candidate high-z FR Is we present in this paper constitutes a pilot study for objects to be observed with future high-resolution and high-sensitivity instruments such as the EVLA and ALMA in the radio band, HST/WFC3 in the optical and IR, James Webb Space Telescope in the IR, as well as future generation X-ray satellites.

Fluxes of cosmic ray particles with different LET values were measured on board the COSMOS-2044 biosatellite under various thicknesses of shielding by stacks of CR-39 and nitrocellulose plastic nuclear track detectors (mounted outside the satellite). The component composition of the particles detected under shieldings of 0.1-2.5 g cm(exp -2) is verified by comparing experimental data with the results of model simulations of the fluxes of galactic cosmic ray particles and of radiation belt protons.

In the Chandra-COSMOS (C-COSMOS) survey, we have looked for X-ray-selected active galactic nuclei (AGNs), which are not detected as such in the optical, the so-called elusive AGNs. A previous study based on XMM-Newton and Sloan Digital Sky Survey observations has found a sample of 31 X-ray AGNs optically misclassified as star-forming (SF) galaxies at z\\lt 0.4, including 17 elusive Sy2s. Using Chandra observations provides a sample of fainter X-ray sources and so, for a given X-ray luminosity, extends to higher redshifts. To study the elusive Sy2s in the C-COSMOS field, we have removed the NLS1s that contaminate the narrow-line sample. Surprisingly, the contribution of NLS1s is much lower in the C-COSMOS sample (less than 10% of the optically misclassified X-ray AGNs) than in Pons & Watson. The optical misclassification of the X-ray AGNs ({L}{{X}}\\gt {10}42 {erg} {{{s}}}-1) can be explained by the intrinsic weakness of these AGNs, in addition to, in some cases, optical dilution by the host galaxies. Interestingly, we found the fraction of elusive Sy2s (narrow emission-line objects) optically misclassified as SF galaxies up to z∼ 1.4 to be 10% ± 3% to 17% ± 4%, compared to the 6% ± 1.5% of the Pons & Watson work (up to z∼ 0.4). This result seems to indicate an evolution with redshift of the number of elusive Sy2s.

Fluxes of cosmic ray particles with different LET values were measured on board the Cosmos-2044 biosatellite under various thicknesses of shielding by stacks of CR-39 and nitrocellulose plastic nuclear track detectors (mounted outside the satellite). The component composition of the particles detected under shieldings of 0.1-2.5 g cm-2 is verified by comparing experimental data with the results of model simulations of the fluxes of galactic cosmic ray particles and of radiation belt protons.

Light and electron microscopy studies were carried out on decalcified tibial epiphyseal plates of rats flown aboard Cosmos 1887 (12.5d flight plus 53.5h recovery). Analysis of variance showed that the proliferative zone of flight animals was significantly higher than that of synchronous controls, while the hypertrophic/calcification zone was significantly reduced. Flight animals had more cells than synchronous controls in the proliferative zone, and less in the hypertrophic/calcification region. The total number of cells, however, was significantly higher in flight animals. No differences were found for perimeter or shape factor of growth plates, but area was significantly lower in flight animals in comparison to synchronous controls. Collagen fibrils in flight animals were shorter and wider than in synchronous controls. The time required for a cell to cycle through the growth plate is 2 to 3 days, so most of the cells and matrix present were formed after the animals had returned to 1 g, and probably represent stages of recovery from microgravity exposure, which in itself is an interesting question.

Multi-Object Fiber Spectroscopic sky surveys are now booming, such as LAMOST already built by China, BIGBOSS project put forward by the U.S. Lawrence Berkeley National Lab and GTC (Gran Telescopio Canarias) telescope developed by the United States, Mexico and Spain. They all use or will use this approach and each fiber can be moved within a certain area for one astrology target, so observation planning is particularly important for this Sky Surveys. One observation planning algorithm used in multi-objective astronomical observations is developed. It can avoid the collision and interference between the fiber positioning units in the focal plane during the observation in one field of view, and the interested objects can be ovserved in a limited round with the maximize efficiency. Also, the observation simulation can be made for wide field of view through multi-FOV observation. After the observation planning is built ,the simulation is made in COSMOS field using GTC telescope. Interested galaxies, stars and high-redshift LBG galaxies are selected after the removal of the mask area, which may be bright stars. Then 9 FOV simulation is completed and observation efficiency and fiber utilization ratio for every round are given. Otherwise,allocating a certain number of fibers for background sky, giving different weights for different objects and how to move the FOV to improve the overall observation efficiency are discussed.

The chemistry, hydroxyapatite crystal size, and maturation of the bone and dentin is characterized in rats exposed to microgravity for 12.5d in a Soviet Biosatellite (Cosmos-1887). Calvarial and vertebral bone ash was subnormal, but contained a normal percent composition of Ca, P, and Mg. These tissues varied from the norm by having lower Ca/P and higher Ca/Mg ratios than any of their age-matched controls (Vivarium and Synchronous Groups). Gradient density analyses (calvaria) indicated a strong shift to the lower sp.gr. fractions which was commensurate with impaired rates of matrix-mineral maturation. X-ray diffraction data were confirmatory. Bone hydroxyapatite crystal growth in Flight rats was preferentially altered in a way to reduce the dimension of their C-axis. Flight rat dentin was normal with respect to age-matched control Ca, P, Mg, and Zn concentrations and their Ca/P and Ca/Mg ratios. These observations affirm the concept that microgravity adversely affects the maturation of newly formed matrix and mineral moieties in bone.

We searched for quasars that are {approx}3 mag fainter than the SDSS quasars in the redshift range 3.7 {approx}< z {approx}< 4.7 in the COSMOS field to constrain the faint end of the quasar luminosity function (QLF). Using optical photometric data, we selected 31 quasar candidates with 22 < i' < 24 at z {approx} 4. We obtained optical spectra for most of these candidates using FOCAS on the Subaru telescope and identified eight low-luminosity quasars at z {approx} 4. In order to derive the QLF based on our spectroscopic follow-up campaign, we estimated the photometric completeness of our quasar survey through detailed Monte Carlo simulations. Our QLF at z {approx} 4 has a much shallower faint-end slope ({beta} = -1.67{sup +0.11}{sub -0.17}) than that obtained by other recent surveys in the same redshift. Our result is consistent with the scenario of downsizing evolution of active galactic nuclei inferred by recent optical and X-ray quasar surveys at lower redshifts.

The location and nature of the defect in mineralization known to occur in growing animals after spaceflight are studied. The distribution of bone mineral density in situ is mapped, and these images are correlated with the chemical composition of the diaphyseal bone. Concentrations of mineral and osteocalcin are found to be low in the distal half of the diaphysis and concentrations of collagen to be low with evidence of increased synthesis in the proximal half of the diaphysis of the flight bones. X-ray microtomography indicates a longitudinal gradient of decreasing mineralization toward the distal diaphysis. Analysis of embedded sections by backscattered electrons reveals patterns of mineral distribution in the proximal, central, and distal regions of the diaphysis and also shows a net reduction in mineral levels toward the distal shaft. Increases in mineral density to higher fractions in controls are less in the flight bones at all three levels.

Cosmic rays from outer space produce neutrons in the atmosphere which are scattered and absorbed by hydrogen in the atmosphere, soil, and vegetation. The intensity of neutrons just above Earth's surface is inversely related to the hydrogen (and therefore water content) of the soil. Neutron detectors situated 2 m above the ground are sensitive to the soil water content of the top 30 cm. Daily estimates of soil water with an uncertainty of < 1% are possible. An individual neutron detector observes an area nearly 700 m in diameter. This spatial scale closely matches the scale of agricultural fields in the Midwest United States. We claim that future weather and climate models will need to resolve soil moisture at this field scale in order to best represent land-atmosphere interactions and subsequently improve forecasts of the soil moisture reservoir in this region. Using neutron detectors to observe soil moisture circumvents the problem of 'scaling up' point observations of soil moisture made with in-situ sensors like TDR or simple gravimetric sampling. The COSMOS (COsmic-ray Soil Moisture Observing System) is a network of nearly 60 neutron detectors deployed in a variety of ecosystems across the United States. Each detector is connected to the network through a satellite communication link and data is available in real-time via the web. The goal of the network is to eventually deploy 500 detectors and provide continental-scale observations of plant-available water. Recently it has been recognized that all hydrogen sources must be considered when interpreting neutron measurements. These sources include static pools of hydrogen (soil chemical composition, bound soil water, and soil organic matter), quasi-static pools (the water stored in vegetation, as well as vegetation dry matter), and transient pools (soil pore water, water vapor in the atmosphere, ponded water, snow, and possibly dew and intercepted precipitation). In the agricultural ecosystems of the Midwest, both

Using the Hubble Space Telescope/Advanced Camera for Surveys data in the COSMOS field, we systematically searched clumpy galaxies at 0.2 < z < 1.0 and investigated the fraction of clumpy galaxies and its evolution as a function of stellar mass, star formation rate (SFR), and specific SFR (SSFR). The fraction of clumpy galaxies in star-forming galaxies with M {sub star} > 10{sup 9.5} M {sub ☉} decreases with time from ∼0.35 at 0.8 < z < 1.0 to ∼0.05 at 0.2 < z < 0.4, irrespective of the stellar mass, although the fraction tends to be slightly lower for massive galaxies with M {sub star} > 10{sup 10.5} M {sub ☉} at each redshift. On the other hand, the fraction of clumpy galaxies increases with increasing both SFR and SSFR in all the redshift ranges we investigated. In particular, we found that the SSFR dependences of the fractions are similar among galaxies with different stellar masses, and the fraction at a given SSFR does not depend on the stellar mass in each redshift bin. The evolution of the fraction of clumpy galaxies from z ∼ 0.9 to z ∼ 0.3 seems to be explained by such SSFR dependence of the fraction and the evolution of SSFRs of star-forming galaxies. The fraction at a given SSFR also appears to decrease with time, but this can be due to the effect of the morphological k correction. We suggest that these results are understood by the gravitational fragmentation model for the formation of giant clumps in disk galaxies, where the gas mass fraction is a crucial parameter.

To demonstrate the feasibility of studying the epoch of massive galaxy cluster formation in a more systematic manner using current and future galaxy surveys, we report the discovery of a large sample of protocluster candidates in the 1.62 deg{sup 2} COSMOS/UltraVISTA field traced by optical/infrared selected galaxies using photometric redshifts. By comparing properly smoothed three-dimensional galaxy density maps of the observations and a set of matched simulations incorporating the dominant observational effects (galaxy selection and photometric redshift uncertainties), we first confirm that the observed ∼15 comoving Mpc-scale galaxy clustering is consistent with ΛCDM models. Using further the relation between high-z overdensity and the present day cluster mass calibrated in these matched simulations, we found 36 candidate structures at 1.6 < z < 3.1, showing overdensities consistent with the progenitors of M{sub z} {sub =} {sub 0} ∼ 10{sup 15} M {sub ☉} clusters. Taking into account the significant upward scattering of lower mass structures, the probabilities for the candidates to have at least M{sub z=} {sub 0} ∼ 10{sup 14} M {sub ☉} are ∼70%. For each structure, about 15%-40% of photometric galaxy candidates are expected to be true protocluster members that will merge into a cluster-scale halo by z = 0. With solely photometric redshifts, we successfully rediscover two spectroscopically confirmed structures in this field, suggesting that our algorithm is robust. This work generates a large sample of uniformly selected protocluster candidates, providing rich targets for spectroscopic follow-up and subsequent studies of cluster formation. Meanwhile, it demonstrates the potential for probing early cluster formation with upcoming redshift surveys such as the Hobby-Eberly Telescope Dark Energy Experiment and the Subaru Prime Focus Spectrograph survey.

Gravitational lensing can provide pure geometric tests of the structure of spacetime, for instance by determining empirically the angular diameter distance-redshift relation. This geometric test has been demonstrated several times using massive clusters which produce a large lensing signal. In this case, matter at a single redshift dominates the lensing signal, so the analysis is straightforward. It is less clear how weaker signals from multiple sources at different redshifts can be stacked to demonstrate the geometric dependence. We introduce a simple measure of relative shear which for flat cosmologies separates the effect of lens and source positions into multiplicative terms, allowing signals from many different source-lens pairs to be combined. Applying this technique to a sample of groups and low-mass clusters in the COSMOS survey, we detect a clear variation of shear with distance behind the lens. This represents the first detection of the geometric effect using weak lensing by multiple, low-mass groups. The variation of distance with redshift is measured with sufficient precision to constrain the equation of state of the universe under the assumption of flatness, equivalent to a detection of a dark energy component {Omega}{sub X} at greater than 99% confidence for an equation-of-state parameter -2.5 {<=} w {<=} -0.1. For the case w = -1, we find a value for the cosmological constant density parameter {Omega}{sub {Lambda}} = 0.85{sup +0.044}{sub -}0{sub .19} (68% CL) and detect cosmic acceleration (q{sub 0} < 0) at the 98% CL. We consider the systematic uncertainties associated with this technique and discuss the prospects for applying it in forthcoming weak-lensing surveys.

The increasing abundance of passive 'red-sequence' galaxies since z {approx} 1-2 is mirrored by a coincident rise in the number of galaxies with spheroidal morphologies. In this paper, however, we show in detail, that, the correspondence between galaxy morphology and color is not perfect, providing insight into the physical origin of this evolution. Using the COSMOS survey, we study a significant population of red-sequence galaxies with disk-like morphologies. These passive disks typically have Sa-Sb morphological types with large bulges, but they are not confined to dense environments. They represent nearly one-half of all red-sequence galaxies and dominate at lower masses ({approx}<10{sup 10} M{sub sun}) where they are increasingly disk-dominated. As a function of time, the abundance of passive disks with M {sub *} {approx}< 10{sup 11} M{sub sun} increases, but not as fast as red-sequence spheroidals in the same mass range. At higher mass, the passive disk population has declined since z {approx} 1, likely because they transform into spheroidals. Based on these trends, we estimate that as much as 60% of galaxies transitioning onto the red sequence evolve through a passive disk phase. The origin of passive disks therefore has broad implications for our understanding of how star formation shuts down. Because passive disks tend to be more bulge-dominated than their star-forming counterparts, a simple fading of blue disks does not fully explain their origin. We explore the strengths and weaknesses of several more sophisticated explanations, including environmental effects, internal stabilization, and disk regrowth during gas-rich mergers. While previous work has sought to explain color and morphological transformations with a single process, these observations open the way to new insight by highlighting the fact that galaxy evolution may actually proceed through several separate stages.

There is strong evidence that powerful active galactic nuclei (AGNs) are important to the evolution of galaxies. AGN evolution at high redshifts, before the density peak, illuminates the role of AGN in the formation and co-evolution of galaxies and their central supermassive black holes (SMBHs) when rapid SMBH growth took place. Optical surveys (e.g. Glikman et al. 2011; Ikeda et al. 2011) are severely biased against obscuration. In contrast, X-ray surveys detect obscured AGNs up to Compton Thick and are now sensitive enough to sample the bulk of the z > 3 AGN population. The few X-ray studies to date suggest a significant decline at z > 3 (e.g. Brusa et al. 2009; Civano et al. 2011; Vito et al; 2012), but the shape of this decline is still uncertain due to the limited sample size, especially at z > 4. To overcome these limits, we combined the two largest samples of z > 3 X-ray selected AGN with spectroscopic redshifts: the Chandra Multi-wavelength Project (ChaMP) survey (Trichas et al. 2012), and the C-COSMOS survey (Civano et al. 2011). The total of 159 z > 3 AGNs almost doubles the sample size and, most importantly, triples the sample at z > 4, where the uncertainties have been greatest. Our sample includes ~35 sources in the low luminosity range [LX < 1044 erg/s] which gives a first determination of their density evolution. Our sample also contains a both obscured and unobscured AGNs, and their separate evolution has been determined.

We investigate the role of supermassive black holes in the global context of galaxy evolution by measuring the host galaxy stellar mass function (HGMF) and the specific accretion rate, that is, λSAR, the distribution function (SARDF), up to z ~ 2.5 with ~1000 X-ray selected AGN from XMM-COSMOS. Using a maximum likelihood approach, we jointly fit the stellar mass function and specific accretion rate distribution function, with the X-ray luminosity function as an additional constraint. Our best-fit model characterizes the SARDF as a double power-law with mass-dependent but redshift-independent break, whose low λSAR slope flattens with increasing redshift while the normalization increases. This implies that for a given stellar mass, higher λSAR objects have a peak in their space density at earlier epoch than the lower λSAR objects, following and mimicking the well-known AGN cosmic downsizing as observed in the AGN luminosity function. The mass function of active galaxies is described by a Schechter function with an almost constant M∗⋆ and a low-mass slope α that flattens with redshift. Compared to the stellar mass function, we find that the HGMF has a similar shape and that up to log (M⋆/M⊙) ~ 11.5, the ratio of AGN host galaxies to star-forming galaxies is basically constant (~10%). Finally, the comparison of the AGN HGMF for different luminosity and specific accretion rate subclasses with a previously published phenomenological model prediction for the "transient" population, which are galaxies in the process of being mass-quenched, reveals that low-luminosity AGN do not appear to be able to contribute significantly to the quenching and that at least at high masses, that is, M⋆ > 1010.7 M⊙, feedback from luminous AGN (log Lbol ≳ 46 [erg/s]) may be responsible for the quenching of star formation in the host galaxy.

We report on interferometric observations at 1.3 mm at 2''-3'' resolution using the Combined Array for Research in Millimeter-wave Astronomy. We identify multi-wavelength counterparts of three submillimeter galaxies (SMGs; F{sub 1m} > 5.5 mJy) in the COSMOS field, initially detected with MAMBO and AzTEC bolometers at low, {approx}10''-30'', resolution. All three sources-AzTEC/C1, Cosbo-3, and Cosbo-8-are identified to coincide with positions of 20 cm radio sources. Cosbo-3, however, is not associated with the most likely radio counterpart, closest to the MAMBO source position, but with that farther away from it. This illustrates the need for intermediate-resolution ({approx}2'') mm-observations to identify the correct counterparts of single-dish-detected SMGs. All of our three sources become prominent only at NIR wavelengths, and their mm-to-radio flux based redshifts suggest that they lie at redshifts z {approx}> 2. As a proof of concept, we show that photometric redshifts can be well determined for SMGs, and we find photometric redshifts of 5.6 {+-} 1.2, 1.9{sup +0.9}{sub -0.5}, and {approx}4 for AzTEC/C1, Cosbo-3, and Cosbo-8, respectively. Using these we infer that these galaxies have radio-based star formation rates of {approx}> 1000 M{sub Sun} yr{sup -1}and IR luminosities of {approx}10{sup 13} L{sub Sun} consistent with properties of high-redshift SMGs. In summary, our sources reflect a variety of SMG properties in terms of redshift and clustering, consistent with the framework that SMGs are progenitors of z {approx} 2 and today's passive galaxies.

Newtonian Cosmology involving a smooth fluid was plagued with the problem of indefiniteness, and General Relativity gave the novel concept of a finite yet unbounded Einstein's Static Universe (ESU). Later, Big Bang model (BBM) essentially incorporated non-static versions of ESU. Also, the concept of a Cosmological Constant (Λ) got reinstated through "Inflation" and "Dark Energy". We dismantle this edifice by presenting several exact proofs showing that Λ = 0 and both ESU & deSitter metrics are just the Minkowski vacuum. More importantly, by using the Schwarzschild form of the FRW metric (Mitra, Grav. Cosmology 2013), we show that FRW metric too is actually the Minkowski vacuum! It is suggested that physical universe is quasi-Newtonian where for any given galaxy, finite gravitational potential is due to interaction of nearest neighbors while the infinite background forces cancel due to symmetry (Chandrasekhar, ApJ 1941). Such an universe is likely to have a fractal structure as suggested by observations. The cosmic redshift might arise due to asymmetric spread of wave packets associated with line emissions from distant galaxies. The cosmic background radiation might be due to thermalization of star lights in an eternal universe as suggested by Hoyle. The compact objects in quasars are ultracompact radiation pressure supported stars which may synthesize light elements and whose explosions & flares infuse fresh plasma for a recycled eternal universe. While these are possibilities, there is indeed no robust alternative cosmology. Though BBM appears to be the best bet, it turns out to be vacuous. In the absence of the BBM singularity, the rationale for "Quantum Gravity" vanishes. It is predicted that there are no primordial Gravitational Waves contrary to BBM suggestion. The fact that the farthest galaxy (z = 7.5) is rich in metals (Finkelstein et al., Nature, 502, 524, 2013) contradicts BBM, and suggests cosmos might be eternal and static.

The Coastal Storm Modeling System (CoSMoS) applies a predominantly deterministic framework to make detailed predictions (meter scale) of storm-induced coastal flooding, erosion, and cliff failures over large geographic scales (100s of kilometers). CoSMoS was developed for hindcast studies, operational applications (i.e., nowcasts and multiday forecasts), and future climate scenarios (i.e., sea-level rise + storms) to provide emergency responders and coastal planners with critical storm hazards information that may be used to increase public safety, mitigate physical damages, and more effectively manage and allocate resources within complex coastal settings. The prototype system, developed for the California coast, uses the global WAVEWATCH III wave model, the TOPEX/Poseidon satellite altimetry-based global tide model, and atmospheric-forcing data from either the US National Weather Service (operational mode) or Global Climate Models (future climate mode), to determine regional wave and water-level boundary conditions. These physical processes are dynamically downscaled using a series of nested Delft3D-WAVE (SWAN) and Delft3D-FLOW (FLOW) models and linked at the coast to tightly spaced XBeach (eXtreme Beach) cross-shore profile models and a Bayesian probabilistic cliff failure model. Hindcast testing demonstrates that, despite uncertainties in preexisting beach morphology over the ~500 km alongshore extent of the pilot study area, CoSMoS effectively identifies discrete sections of the coast (100s of meters) that are vulnerable to coastal hazards under a range of current and future oceanographic forcing conditions, and is therefore an effective tool for operational and future climate scenario planning.

We present the results of HI spectral stacking analysis of Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT) observations targeting the COSMOS field. The GMRT data cube contains 474 field galaxies with redshifts known from the zCOSMOS-bright 10k catalogue. Spectra for the galaxies are co-added and the stacked spectrum allows us to make a $\\sim 3\\sigma$ measurement of the average HI mass. Using this average HI mass along with the integral optical $B$-band luminosity of the galaxies and the luminosity density of the COSMOS field, a volume normalisation is applied to obtain the cosmic HI mass density ($\\Omega_{\\rm HI}$). We find a cosmic HI mass density of $\\Omega_{\\rm HI}$ = (0.42 $\\pm$ 0.16) $\\times$ 10$^{-3}$ at $z \\sim 0.37$, which is the highest-redshift measurement of $\\Omega_{\\rm HI}$ ever made using HI spectral stacking. The value we obtained for $\\Omega_{\\rm HI}$ at $z \\sim 0.37$ is consistent with that measured from large blind 21-cm surveys at $z = 0$ as well as measurements from other HI stacking experiments at lower redshifts. Our measurement in conjunction with earlier measurements indicates that there has been no significant evolution of HI gas abundance over the last 4 Gyr. A weighted mean of $\\Omega_{\\rm HI}$ from all 21-cm measurements at redshifts $z \\lesssim 0.4$ gives $\\Omega_{\\rm HI}$ = (0.35 $\\pm$ 0.01) $\\times$ 10$^{-3}$. The $\\Omega_{\\rm HI}$ measured (from HI 21-cm emission measurements) at $z \\lesssim 0.4$ is however approximately half that measured from Damped Lyman-$\\alpha$ Absorption (DLA) systems at $z \\gtrsim 2$. Deeper surveys with existing and upcoming instruments will be critical to understand the evolution of $\\Omega_{\\rm HI}$ in the redshift range intermediate between $z \\sim 0.4$ and the range probed by DLA observations.

I am an ecosystem artist who uses paint to bring nature's “invisible forces” into view. My eco-sensitive palette recreates the push-pull forces that shape and mold all things. As a result, I create microscopic and telescopic views of earth and places scattered throughout our universe. Self-similarity led me to realize that if I want my mind to wonder into the far reaches of the universe, I must draw closer to nature. I show how space looks and appears and, more importantly, how it moves. My speed element palette is a portal through which I peer into the universe at scales great and small using paint as my lens. Microscopes, telescopes, the Internet, and even eyeglasses are portals through which technology affords us the ability to see that which is unseen to the unaided eye. Rather than see the world and then paint, the opposite is true for me. My work is revelatory, not representational and, as such, seeks similar occurrences in nature. Just as a planet's surface is a visual record of past events, so too do speed element experiments reveal traces of the past. It would be more accurate to call a painting that comes to rest a “painted.” It is video that captures images that eluded capture by the canvas and could more accurately be called a “painting. ” Simply put, I manipulate space, time, and matter—and the matter is never just paint.

On June 8th 2004, a celestial event of immense historical scientific importance will once again occur as the silhouette of the planet Venus crosses the disk of the Sun. There have been only six occurrences of the transit of Venus since the invention of the telescope, the last five having been observed; the last one occurring in 1882. No one alive today has seen this event. Predicted by Kepler and Horrocks among others, Venus Transit provided a crucial test bed for the calculation of the Astronomical Unit and therefore was critical to our first real glimpses at the size and scale of the universe. The NASA OSS Education Support Network and its partner organizations in space science education have undertaken to capitalize on this event to provide educational programs, products, and remote observations of the transit to students, teachers, amateur astronomers, and the public. Online transit images from remote observatories spaced in latitude will allow both formal and informal education audiences to recreate the historic calculation of the AU and thus, the size of the solar system. Information and activities on related topics including planetary comparisons, stellar parallax, and the search for extra solar planets coupled with math, geography, and history components will be developed along with a web cast from Europe, museum programs, and other special events. This paper will describe the Venus Transit education program in its entirety and show how scientists can participate.

The role of images of information (charts, diagrams, maps, and symbols) for effective presentation of facts and concepts is expanding dramatically because of advances in computer graphics technology, increasingly hetero-lingual, hetero-cultural world target populations of information providers, the urgent need to convey more efficiently vast amounts of information, the broadening population of (non-expert) computer users, the decrease of available time for reading texts and for decision making, and the general level of literacy. A coalition of visual performance experts, human engineering specialists, computer scientists, and graphic designers/artists is required to resolve human factors aspects of images of information. The need for, nature of, and benefits of interdisciplinary effort are discussed. The results of an interdisciplinary collaboration are demonstrated in a product for visualizing complex information about global energy interdependence. An invited panel will respond to the presentation.

Large-scale prospective cohort studies are invaluable in epidemiology, but they are increasingly difficult and costly to establish and follow-up. More efficient methods for recruitment, data collection and follow-up are essential if such studies are to remain feasible with limited public and research funds. Here, we discuss how these challenges were addressed in the UK COSMOS cohort study where fixed budget and limited time frame necessitated new approaches to consent and recruitment between 2009-2012. Web-based e-consent and data collection should be considered in large scale observational studies, as they offer a streamlined experience which benefits both participants and researchers and save costs. Commercial providers of register and marketing data, smartphones, apps, email, social media, and the internet offer innovative possibilities for identifying, recruiting and following up cohorts. Using examples from UK COSMOS, this article sets out the dos and don'ts for today's cohort studies and provides a guide on how best to take advantage of new technologies and innovative methods to simplify logistics and minimise costs. Thus a more streamlined experience to the benefit of both research participants and researchers becomes achievable. PMID:26147611

The potentially specific importance of the heavy ions of the galactic cosmic radiation for radiation protection in manned spaceflight continues to stimulate in situ, i.e., spaceflight experiments to investigate their radiobiological properties. Chromosome aberrations as an expression of a direct assault on the genome are of particular interest in view of cancerogenesis being the primary radiation risk for man in space. In such investigations the establishment of the geometrical correlation between heavy ions' trajectories and the location of radiation sensitive biological substructures is an essential task. The overall qualitative and quantitative precision achieved for the identification of particle trajectories in the order of 2~10 μm as well as the contributing sources of uncertainties are discussed. We describe how this was achieved for seeds of Lactuca sativa as biological test organisms, whose location and orientation had to be derived from contact photographies displaying their outlines and those of the holder plates only. The incidence of chromosome aberrations in cells exposed during the COSMOS 1887 (Biosatellite 8) and the COSMOS 2044 (Biosatellite 9) mission was determined for seeds hit by cosmic heavy ions. In those seeds the incidence of both single and multiple chromosome aberrations was enhanced. The results of the Biosatellite 9 experiment, however, are confounded by spaceflight effects unrelated to the passage of heavy ions.

The geodynamic setting of the Neoarchaean Eastern Goldfields Superterrane (EGS) of the Yilgarn Craton is the subject of debate. Some authors propose plume models, while others advocate variants on a subduction accretion model for the origin of mineralised greenstone belt sequences. Felsic volcanism in the Kalgoorlie Terrane, the westernmost terrane of the EGS, is considered to have a tonalite-trondhjemite-granodiorite/dacite (TTG/D) geochemical affinity. The Cosmos greenstone succession, which lies in the Agnew-Wiluna greenstone belt (AWB) of the Kalgoorlie Terrane, contains several komatiite-hosted nickel sulphide deposits, the volcanic footwall to which consists of an intercalated succession of fragmental and coherent rocks ranging in composition from basaltic andesite to rhyolite. Light rare earth elements (LREEs) and large ion-lithophile elements (LILEs) are strongly enriched relative to high field strength elements (HFSEs) across all volcanic units, and the rocks display strong positive Pb and negative Nb anomalies. These geochemical characteristics resemble closely those of modern high-K calc-alkaline to shoshonite continental arc successions. Contrasting REE, LILE and HFSE concentrations, coupled with assimilation-fractional crystallisation (AFC) modelling, shows that the intercalated dacitic and andesitic volcanic rocks within the footwall succession are not co-genetic. Xenocrystic zircons within the felsic volcanic lithologies indicate that some assimilation of older continental crust contributed to the generation of the footwall volcanic sequence. The geochemical characteristics of the Cosmos volcanic succession indicate that parental melts were derived via partial melting of enriched peridotite that had been contaminated by subducted crustal material within the mantle wedge of a subduction zone. In contrast, two younger felsic porphyry intrusions, which cross-cut the volcanic succession, have a distinct TTG/D affinity. Therefore, these intrusions are

We present results of a statistical study of the cosmic evolution of the mass-dependent major-merger rate since z = 1. A stellar mass limited sample of close major-merger pairs (the CPAIR sample) was selected from the archive of the COSMOS survey. Pair fractions at different redshifts derived using the CPAIR sample and a local K-band-selected pair sample show no significant variations with stellar mass. The pair fraction exhibits moderately strong cosmic evolution, with the best-fitting function of f{sub pair} = 10{sup -1.88({+-}0.03)}(1 + z){sup 2.2({+-}0.2)}. The best-fitting function for the merger rate is R{sub mg} (Gyr{sup -1}) = 0.053 Multiplication-Sign (M{sub star}/10{sup 10.7} M{sub Sun} ){sup 0.3}(1 + z){sup 2.2}/(1 + z/8). This rate implies that galaxies of M{sub star} {approx} 10{sup 10}-10{sup 11.5} M{sub Sun} have undergone {approx}0.5-1.5 major mergers since z = 1. Our results show that, for massive galaxies (M{sub star} {>=} 10{sup 10.5} M{sub Sun }) at z {<=} 1, major mergers involving star-forming galaxies (i.e., wet and mixed mergers) can account for the formation of both ellipticals and red quiescent galaxies (RQGs). On the other hand, major mergers cannot be responsible for the formation of most low mass ellipticals and RQGs of M{sub star} {approx}< 10{sup 10.3} M{sub Sun }. Our quantitative estimates indicate that major mergers have significant impact on the stellar mass assembly of the most massive galaxies (M{sub star} {>=} 10{sup 11.3} M{sub Sun }), but for less massive galaxies the stellar mass assembly is dominated by the star formation. Comparison with the mass-dependent (ultra)luminous infrared galaxies ((U)LIRG) rates suggests that the frequency of major-merger events is comparable to or higher than that of (U)LIRGs.

We present new Keck/MOSFIRE K-band spectroscopy for a sample of 14 faint, X-ray-selected active galactic nuclei (AGNs) in the COSMOS field. The data cover the spectral region surrounding the broad Balmer emission lines, which enables the estimation of black hole masses ({M}{BH}) and accretion rates (in terms of L/{L}{Edd}). We focus on 10 AGNs at z ≃ 3.3, where we observe the Hβ spectral region, while for the other four z ≃ 2.4 sources we use the {{H}}α broad emission line. Compared with previous detailed studies of unobscured AGNs at these high redshifts, our sources are fainter by an order of magnitude, corresponding to number densities of order ∼10‑6–10‑5 {{Mpc}}-3. The lower AGN luminosities also allow for a robust identification of the host galaxy emission, necessary to obtain reliable intrinsic AGN luminosities, BH masses and accretion rates. We find the AGNs in our sample to be powered by supermassive black holes (SMBHs) with a typical mass of {M}{BH}≃ 5× {10}8 {M}ȯ —significantly lower than the higher-luminosity, rarer quasars reported in earlier studies. The accretion rates are in the range L/{L}{Edd} ∼ 0.1–0.4, with an evident lack of sources with lower L/{L}{Edd} (and higher {M}{BH}), as found in several studies of faint AGNs at intermediate redshifts. Based on the early growth expected for the SMBHs in our sample, we argue that a significant population of faint z ∼ 5‑6 AGNs, with {M}{BH}∼ {10}6 {M}ȯ , should be detectable in the deepest X-ray surveys available, but this is not observed. We discuss several possible explanations for the apparent absence of such a population, concluding that the most probable scenario involves an evolution in source obscuration and/or radiative efficiencies.

Aims: The goal of this work is to better understand the correlations between the rest-frame UV/optical variability amplitude of quasi-stellar objects (QSOs) and physical quantities such as redshift, luminosity, black hole mass, and Eddington ratio. Previous analyses of the same type found evidence for correlations between the variability amplitude and these active galactic nucleus (AGN) parameters. However, most of the relations exhibit considerable scatter, and the trends obtained by various authors are often contradictory. Moreover, the shape of the optical power spectral density (PSD) is currently available for only a handful of objects. Methods: We searched for scaling relations between the fundamental AGN parameters and rest-frame UV/optical variability properties for a sample of ~90 X-ray selected AGNs covering a wide redshift range from the XMM-COSMOS survey, with optical light curves in four bands (gP1, rP1, iP1, zP1) provided by the Pan-STARRS1 (PS1) Medium Deep Field 04 survey. To estimate the variability amplitude, we used the normalized excess variance (σ2rms) and probed variability on rest-frame timescales of several months and years by calculating σ2rms from different parts of our light curves. In addition, we derived the rest-frame optical PSD for our sources using continuous-time autoregressive moving average (CARMA) models. Results: We observe that the excess variance and the PSD amplitude are strongly anticorrelated with wavelength, bolometric luminosity, and Eddington ratio. There is no evidence for a dependency of the variability amplitude on black hole mass and redshift. These results suggest that the accretion rate is the fundamental physical quantity determining the rest-frame UV/optical variability amplitude of quasars on timescales of months and years. The optical PSD of all of our sources is consistent with a broken power law showing a characteristic bend at rest-frame timescales ranging between ~100 and ~300 days. The break timescale

The XMM-Large scale structure (XMM-LSS), XMM-Cosmological evolution survey (XMM-COSMOS), and XMM-Chandra deep field south (XMM-CDFS) surveys are complementary in terms of sky coverage and depth. Together, they form a clean sample with the least possible variance in instrument effective areas and point spread function. Therefore this is one of the best samples available to determine the 2-10 keV luminosity function of active galactic nuclei (AGN) and their evolution. The samples and the relevant corrections for incompleteness are described. A total of 2887 AGN is used to build the LF in the luminosity interval 1042-1046 erg s-1 and in the redshift interval 0.001-4. A new method to correct for absorption by considering the probability distribution for the column density conditioned on the hardness ratio is presented. The binned luminosity function and its evolution is determined with a variant of the Page-Carrera method, which is improved to include corrections for absorption and to account for the full probability distribution of photometric redshifts. Parametric models, namely a double power law with luminosity and density evolution (LADE) or luminosity-dependent density evolution (LDDE), are explored using Bayesian inference. We introduce the Watanabe-Akaike information criterion (WAIC) to compare the models and estimate their predictive power. Our data are best described by the LADE model, as hinted by the WAIC indicator. We also explore the recently proposed 15-parameter extended LDDE model and find that this extension is not supported by our data. The strength of our method is that it provides unabsorbed, non-parametric estimates, credible intervals for luminosity function parameters, and a model choice based on predictive power for future data. Based on observations obtained with XMM-Newton, an ESA science mission with instruments and contributions directly funded by ESA member states and NASA.Tables with the samples of the posterior probability distributions

We present deep 450 μm and 850 μm observations of a large, uniformly covered 394 arcmin2 area in the Cosmic Evolution Survey (COSMOS) field obtained with the SCUBA-2 instrument on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT). We achieve root-mean-square noise values of σ450 = 4.13 mJy and σ850 = 0.80 mJy. The differential and cumulative number counts are presented and compared to similar previous works. Individual point sources are identified at >3.6σ significance, a threshold corresponding to a 3-5 per cent sample contamination rate. We identify 78 sources at 450 μm and 99 at 850 μm, with flux densities S450 = 13-37 mJy and S850 = 2-16 mJy. Only 62-76 per cent of 450 μm sources are 850 μm detected and 61-81 per cent of 850 μm sources are 450 μm detected. The positional uncertainties at 450 μm are small (1-2.5 arcsec) and therefore allow a precise identification of multiwavelength counterparts without reliance on detection at 24 μm or radio wavelengths; we find that only 44 per cent of 450 μm sources and 60 per cent of 850 μm sources have 24 μm or radio counterparts. 450 μm selected galaxies peak at = 1.95 ± 0.19 and 850 μm selected galaxies peak at = 2.16 ± 0.11. The two samples occupy similar parameter space in redshift and luminosity, while their median SED peak wavelengths differ by ˜20-50 μm (translating to ΔTdust = 8-12 K, where 450 μm selected galaxies are warmer). The similarities of the 450 μm and 850 μm populations, yet lack of direct overlap between them, suggests that submillimetre surveys conducted at any single far-infrared wavelength will be significantly incomplete (≳30 per cent) at censusing infrared-luminous star formation at high z.

Discusses areas of modern astronomy that owe their development largely to nonoptical radiation: radio, infrared, ultraviolet, and x-ray radiation. Indicates new observations favor the big-bang" model of the universe, for it is now established that the earth is expanding at a measurable rate. Annotated bibliography. (LS)

Based on the very popular liberal arts course Bob Bless has taught at University of Wisconsin for over twenty years, this book provides a rich, historical approach to introductory astronomy. It is ideal for use in an introductory astronomy course for nonmajors. An Instructor's Manual, test questions and transparencies are also available for adopting professors.

The origins of science and the construction of the Periodic Table are two of the topics discussed in this presentation. Other topics covered in detail are the origins of life on Earth, and its evolution, and the role of astronomy teaching in high school.

The left ventricle of hearts from rats flown on the Cosmos 1887 biosatellite for 12.5 days was compared to the same tissue of synchronous and vivarium control animals maintained in a ground based laboratory. The volume density of the mitochondria in the myocardium of the space-flown animals was statistically less (p equal less than 0.01) than that of the synchronous or vivarium control rats. Exposure to microgravity resulted in a certain degree of myocardial degeneration manifested in mitochondrial changes and accumulation of myeloid bodies. Generalized myofibrillar edema was also observed.

We report on the stellar content of the COSMOS two degree field, as derived from a rigorous star-galaxy separation approach developed for using stellar sources to define the point-spread function variation map used in a study of weak galaxy lensing. The catalog obtained in one filter from the ACS (Advanced Camera for Surveys on the Hubble Space Telescope) is cross-identified with ground-based multiwavelength catalogs obtained using the Suprime-Cam instrument on the Subaru Telescope, which makes possible detailed spectral energy distribution (SED) fitting in order to separate stars from QSOs and compact galaxies. The classification is reliable to magnitude F814W=24, and the sample is complete even fainter. We construct a color-magnitude diagram and color histograms and compare them with predictions of a standard model of population synthesis at (l,b)=(236.816deg,+42.12deg). We find features corresponding to the halo subdwarf main-sequence turnoff, the thick disk, and the thin disk. We propose improvements to the standard model that give a better fit: this data set provides constraints on the thick disk and spheroid density laws and on the initial mass function at low mass, although complementary lines of sight would help in lifting the degeneracy between model parameters as well as mitigating any variations in the stellar populations. The depth of this survey makes it possible to explore the spheroid up to distances of ~80 kpc; we find no evidence of a sharp spheroid edge out to this distance, which corresponds to a galactocentric radius of 83 kpc. We identify a blue population of white dwarfs with counts that agree with model predictions. We find a hint for a possible slight stellar overdensity at about 22-34 kpc, but the data are not strong enough at present to claim detection of a stream feature in the halo. Based on observations with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope obtained at the Space Telescope Science Institute, which is operated by the Association of

Using the Hubble Space Telescope/Advanced Camera for Surveys data in the COSMOS field, we systematically searched clumpy galaxies at 0.2 < z < 1.0 and investigated the fraction of clumpy galaxies and its evolution as a function of stellar mass, star formation rate (SFR), and specific SFR (SSFR). The fraction of clumpy galaxies in star-forming galaxies with M star > 109.5 M ⊙ decreases with time from ~0.35 at 0.8 < z < 1.0 to ~0.05 at 0.2 < z < 0.4, irrespective of the stellar mass, although the fraction tends to be slightly lower for massive galaxies with M star > 1010.5 M ⊙ at each redshift. On the other hand, the fraction of clumpy galaxies increases with increasing both SFR and SSFR in all the redshift ranges we investigated. In particular, we found that the SSFR dependences of the fractions are similar among galaxies with different stellar masses, and the fraction at a given SSFR does not depend on the stellar mass in each redshift bin. The evolution of the fraction of clumpy galaxies from z ~ 0.9 to z ~ 0.3 seems to be explained by such SSFR dependence of the fraction and the evolution of SSFRs of star-forming galaxies. The fraction at a given SSFR also appears to decrease with time, but this can be due to the effect of the morphological k correction. We suggest that these results are understood by the gravitational fragmentation model for the formation of giant clumps in disk galaxies, where the gas mass fraction is a crucial parameter. Based on observations with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, obtained at the Space Telescope Science Institute, which is operated by AURA, Inc., under NASA contract NAS 5-26555. Also based on observations made with the Spitzer Space Telescope, which is operated by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, under NASA contract 1407. Also based on data collected at the Subaru Telescope, which is operated by the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan; the XMM-Newton, an ESA science mission with

It has been noted by various reports that during recent years, there has been an alarming decline in young people's interest for science studies and mathematics. Since it is believed that the traditional teaching methods often fail to foster positive attitudes towards learning science, the European Commission has made intensive efforts to promote science education in schools though new methods based on the inquiry methodology of learning: questions, search and answers. This should be coupled to laboratories and hands-on experience which should be structured and scaffolded in a pedagogically meaningful way. "PATHWAY", "Discover the COSMOS" and "ISE" have been providing the lesson plans and the best practices for teachers and students and "Go-lab" is working towards an integrated set up of on-line labs for large scale use in science education. In the next sections some concrete examples which aim to bring the High Energy Physics (HEP) frontier research to schools will be given.

Testes from rats flown on Cosmos 1887 for twelve and a half days were compared to basal control, synchronous control and vivarium maintained rats. When the mean weights of flight testes, normalized for weight/100 gms, were compared to the vivarium controls they were 6.7 percent lighter. Although the flight testes were lighter than the synchronous, the difference is not significant. Counts of spermatogonial cells from 5 animals in each group revealed a 4 percent decrease in flight compared to vivarium controls. In both cases the t-Test significance was less than 0.02. The serum testosterone levels of all animals (flight, synchronous and vivarium) were significantly below the basal controls.

Cosmos 2044 was launched on September 15, 1989, containing radiation dosimetry experiments and a biological payload including two young male rhesus monkeys, ten adult male Wistar rats, insects, amphibians, protozoa, cell cultures, worms, plants and fish. The biosatellite was launched from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in the Soviet Union for a mission duration of 14 days, as planned. The major research objectives were: (1) Study adaptive response mechanisms of mammals during flight; (2) Study physiological mechanisms underlying vestibular, motor system and brain function in primates during early and later adaptation phases; (3) Study the tissue regeneration processes of mammals; (4) Study the development of single-celled organisms, cell cultures and embryos in microgravity; (5) Study radiation characteristics during the mission and investigate doses, fluxes and spectra of cosmic radiation for various types of shielding. American and Soviet specialists jointly conducted 29 experiments on this mission including extensive preflight and post flight studies with rhesus monkeys, and tissue processing and cell culturing post flight. Biosamples and data were subsequently transferred to the United States. The U.S. responsibilities for this flight included development of flight and ground-based hardware, the preparation of rat tissue sample procedures, the verification testing of hardware and experiment procedures, and the post flight analysis of biospecimens and data for the joint experiments. The U.S. investigations included four primate experiments, 24 rat experiments, and one radiation dosimetry experiment. Three scientists investigated tissue repair during flight for a subgroup of rats injured preflight by surgical intervention. A description of the Cosmos 2044 mission is presented in this report including preflight, on-orbit and post flight activities. The flight and ground-based bioinstrumentation which was developed by the U.S. and U.S.S.R. is also described, along with

A mass spectrometer on board Cosmos-274 measured concentrations of light atoms and ions. While traversing the geomagnetic equator during the evening hours it recorded on anomalous drop in ionized molecular oxygen and ionized atomic oxygen and nitrogen. A similar, less dramatic, decline was observed in the concentration of neutral atomic oxygen. A possible explanation for this and previously observed behavior is an ascent in altitude of the F layer in the hours after sunset, a possibility which is supported by calculations.

Aims: We present the analysis of photometric, spectroscopic, and morphological properties for differently selected samples of passive galaxies up to z = 1 extracted from the zCOSMOS-20k spectroscopic survey. This analysis intends toexplore the dependence of galaxy properties on the selection criterion adopted, study the degree of contamination due to star-forming outliers, and provide a comparison between different commonly used selection criteria. This work is a first step to fully investigating the selection effects of passive galaxies for future massive surveys such as Euclid. Methods: We extracted from the zCOSMOS-20k catalog six different samples of passive galaxies, based on morphology (3336 "morphological" early-type galaxies), optical colors (4889 "red-sequence" galaxies and 4882 "red UVJ" galaxies), specific star-formation rate (2937 "quiescent" galaxies), a best fit to the observed spectral energy distribution (2603 "red SED" galaxies), and a criterion that combines morphological, spectroscopic, and photometric information (1530 "red & passive early-type galaxies"). For all the samples, we studied optical and infrared colors, morphological properties, specific star-formation rates (SFRs), and the equivalent widths of the residual emission lines; this analysis was performed as a function of redshift and stellar mass to inspect further possible dependencies. Results: We find that each passive galaxy sample displays a certain level of contamination due to blue/star-forming/nonpassive outliers. The morphological sample is the one that presents the higher percentage of contamination, with ~12-65% (depending on the mass range) of galaxies not located in the red sequence, ~25-80% of galaxies with a specific SFR up to ~25 times higher than the adopted definition of passive, and significant emission lines found in the median stacked spectra, at least for log (M/M⊙) < 10.25. The red & passive ETGs sample is the purest, with a percentage of contamination in color

Context. Studying theevolution of galaxies located within groups may have important implications for our understanding of the global evolution of the galaxy population as a whole. The fraction of galaxies bound in groups at z ~ 0 is as high as 60% and therefore any mechanism (among the many suggested) that could quench star formation when a galaxy enters group environment would be an important driver for galaxy evolution. Aims: Using the group catalog obtained from zCOSMOS spectroscopic data and the complementary photometric data from the COSMOS survey, we explore segregation effects occurring in groups of galaxies at intermediate/high redshifts. Our aim is to reveal if, and how significantly, group environment affects the evolution of infalling galaxies. Methods: We built two composite groups at intermediate (0.2 ≤ z ≤ 0.45) and high (0.45 < z ≤ 0.8) redshifts, and we divided the corresponding composite group galaxies into three samples according to their distance from the group center. The samples roughly correspond to galaxies located in a group's inner core, intermediate, and infall region. We explored how galaxy stellar masses and colors - working in narrow bins of stellar masses - vary as a function of the galaxy distance from the group center. Results: We found that the most massive galaxies in our sample (log (ℳgal/ℳ⊙) ≥ 10.6) do not display any strong group-centric dependence of the fractions of red/blue objects. For galaxies of lower masses (9.8 ≤ log (ℳgal/ℳ⊙) ≤ 10.6) there is a radial dependence in the changing mix of red and blue galaxies. This dependence is most evident in poor groups, whereas richer groups do not display any obvious trend of the blue fraction. Interestingly, mass segregation shows the opposite behavior: it is visible only in rich groups, while poorer groups have a a constant mix of galaxy stellar masses as a function of radius. Conclusions: These findings can be explained in a simple scenario where color- and

We report on the measurement of the physical properties (rest-frame K-band luminosity and total stellar mass) of the hosts of 89 broad-line (type-1) active galactic nuclei (AGNs) detected in the zCOSMOS survey in the redshift range 1 < z < 2.2. The unprecedented multi-wavelength coverage of the survey field allows us to disentangle the emission of the host galaxy from that of the nuclear black hole in their spectral energy distributions (SEDs). We derive an estimate of black hole masses through the analysis of the broad Mg II emission lines observed in the medium-resolution spectra taken with VIMOS/VLT as part of the zCOSMOS project. We found that, as compared to the local value, the average black hole to host-galaxy mass ratio appears to evolve positively with redshift, with a best-fit evolution of the form (1+z){sup 0.68+}-{sup 0.12+0.6{sub -0.3}}, where the large asymmetric systematic errors stem from the uncertainties in the choice of initial mass function, in the calibration of the virial relation used to estimate BH masses and in the mean QSO SED adopted. On the other hand, if we consider the observed rest-frame K-band luminosity, objects tend to be brighter, for a given black hole mass, than those on the local M{sub BH}-M{sub K} relation. This fact, together with more indirect evidence from the SED fitting itself, suggests that the AGN hosts are likely actively star-forming galaxies. A thorough analysis of observational biases induced by intrinsic scatter in the scaling relations reinforces the conclusion that an evolution of the M{sub BH}-M{sub *} relation must ensue for actively growing black holes at early times: either its overall normalization, or its intrinsic scatter (or both) appear to increase with redshift. This can be interpreted as signature of either a more rapid growth of supermassive black holes at high redshift, a change of structural properties of AGN hosts at earlier times, or a significant mismatch between the typical growth times of

In the local universe, there is good evidence that, at a given stellar mass M, the gas-phase metallicity Z is anti-correlated with the star formation rate (SFR) of the galaxies. It has also been claimed that the resulting Z(M, SFR) relation is invariant with redshift—the so-called 'fundamental metallicity relation' (FMR). Given a number of difficulties in determining metallicities, especially at higher redshifts, the form of the Z(M, SFR) relation and whether it is really independent of redshift is still very controversial. To explore this issue at z > 2, we used VLT-SINFONI and Subaru-MOIRCS near-infrared spectroscopy of 20 zCOSMOS-deep galaxies at 2.1 < z < 2.5 to measure the strengths of up to five emission lines: [O II] λ3727, Hβ, [O III] λ5007, Hα, and [N II] λ6584. This near-infrared spectroscopy enables us to derive O/H metallicities, and also SFRs from extinction corrected Hα measurements. We find that the mass-metallicity relation (MZR) of these star-forming galaxies at z ≈ 2.3 is lower than the local Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) MZR by a factor of three to five, a larger change than found by Erb et al. using [N II]/Hα-based metallicities from stacked spectra. We discuss how the different selections of the samples and metallicity calibrations used may be responsible for this discrepancy. The galaxies show direct evidence that the SFR is still a second parameter in the MZR at these redshifts. However, determining whether the Z(M, SFR) relation is invariant with epoch depends on the choice of extrapolation used from local samples, because z > 2 galaxies of a given mass have much higher SFRs than the local SDSS galaxies. We find that the zCOSMOS galaxies are consistent with a non-evolving FMR if we use the physically motivated formulation of the Z(M, SFR) relation from Lilly et al., but not if we use the empirical formulation of Mannucci et al.

We have used the zCOSMOS-bright 10k sample to identify 3244 Spitzer/MIPS 24 mum-selected galaxies with 0.06 mJy < S{sub 24{sub m}}u{sub m} approx< 0.50 mJy and I{sub AB} < 22.5, over 1.5 deg{sup 2} of the COSMOS field, and studied different spectral properties, depending on redshift. At 0.2 < z < 0.3, we found that different reddening laws of common use in the literature explain the dust extinction properties of approx80% of our infrared (IR) sources, within the error bars. For up to 16% of objects, instead, the Halpha lambda6563/Hbeta lambda4861 ratios are too high for their IR/UV attenuations, which is probably a consequence of inhomogeneous dust distributions. In only a few of our galaxies at 0.2 < z < 0.3, the IR emission could be mainly produced by dust heated by old rather than young stars. Besides, the line ratios of approx22% of our galaxies suggest that they might be star-formation/nuclear-activity composite systems. At 0.5 < z < 0.7, we estimated galaxy metallicities for 301 galaxies: at least 12% of them are securely below the upper-branch mass-metallicity trend, which is consistent with the local relation. Finally, we performed a combined analysis of the H{sub d}elta equivalent width versus D{sub n} (4000) diagram for 1722 faint and bright 24 mum galaxies at 0.6 < z < 1.0, spanning two decades in mid-IR luminosity. We found that, while secondary bursts of star formation are necessary to explain the position of the most luminous IR galaxies in that diagram, quiescent, exponentially declining star formation histories can well reproduce the spectral properties of approx40% of the less luminous sources. Our results suggest a transition in the possible modes of star formation at total IR luminosities L{sub TIR} approx (3 +- 2) x 10{sup 11} L{sub sun}.

Context. The obscured accretion phase in black hole growth is a crucial ingredient in many models linking the active galactic nuclei (AGN) activity with the evolution of their host galaxy. At present, a complete census of obscured AGN is still missing, although several attempts in this direction have been carried out recently, mostly in the hard X-rays and at mid-infrared wavelengths. Aims: The purpose of this work is to assess whether the [Ne v] emission line at 3426 Å can reliably pick up obscured AGN up to z ≈ 1 by assuming that it is a reliable proxy of the intrinsic AGN luminosity and using moderately deep X-ray data to characterize the amount of obscuration. Methods: A sample of 69 narrow-line (Type 2) AGN at z ≈ 0.65-1.20 were selected from the 20k-zCOSMOS Bright galaxy sample on the basis of the presence of the [Ne v]3426 Å emission. The X-ray properties of these galaxies were then derived using the Chandra-COSMOS coverage of the field; the X-ray-to-[Ne v] flux ratio, coupled with X-ray spectral and stacking analyses, was then used to infer whether Compton-thin or Compton-thick absorption is present in these sources. Then the [Ne v] luminosity function was computed to estimate the space density of Compton-thick AGN at z ≈ 0.8. Results: Twenty-three sources were detected by Chandra, and their properties are consistent with moderate obscuration (on average, ≈a few × 1022 cm-2). The X-ray properties of the remaining 46 X-ray undetected Type 2 AGN (among which we expect to find the most heavily obscured objects) were derived using X-ray stacking analysis. Current data, supported by Monte Carlo simulations, indicate that a fraction as high as ≈40% of the present sample is likely to be Compton thick. The space density of Compton-thick AGN with logL2-10 keV> 43.5 at z = 0.83 is ΦThick = (9.1 ± 2.1) × 10-6 Mpc-3, in good agreement with both X-ray background model expectations and the previously measured space density for objects in a similar

Quantitative autoradiographic analysis of receptors for GABA and acetylcholine in the forebrain of rats flown on COSMOS 2044 was undertaken as part of a joint US-Soviet study to determine the effects of microgravity on the central nervous system, and in particular on the sensory and motor portions of the forebrain. Changes in binding of these receptors in tissue from animals exposed to microgravity would provide evidence for possible changes in neural processing as a result of exposure to microgravity. Tritium-labelled diazepam and Quinuclidinyl-benzilate (QNB) were used to visualize GABA (benzodiazepine) and muscarinic (cholinergic) receptors, respectively. The density of tritium-labelled radioligands bound to various regions in the forebrain of both flight and control animals were measured from autoradiograms. Data from rats flown in space and from ground-based control animals that were not exposed to microgravity were compared.

We examine the red fraction of central and satellite galaxies in the large zCOSMOS group catalog out to z {approx_equal} 0.8, correcting for both the incompleteness in stellar mass and for the less than perfect purities of the central and satellite samples. We show that at all masses and at all redshifts, the fraction of satellite galaxies that have been quenched, i.e., that are red, is systematically higher than that of centrals, as seen locally in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). The satellite quenching efficiency, which is the probability that a satellite is quenched because it is a satellite rather than a central, is, as locally, independent of stellar mass. Furthermore, the average value is about 0.5, which is also very similar to that seen in the SDSS. We also construct the mass functions of blue and red centrals and satellites and show that these broadly follow the predictions of the Peng et al. analysis of the SDSS groups. Together, these results indicate that the effect of the group environment in quenching satellite galaxies was very similar to what it is today when the universe was about half its present age.

The study of Ly{alpha} emission in the high-redshift universe is a useful probe of the epoch of reionization, as the Ly{alpha} line should be attenuated by the intergalactic medium (IGM) at low to moderate neutral hydrogen fractions. Here we present the results of a deep and wide imaging search for Ly{alpha} emitters in the Cosmological Evolution Survey field. We have used two ultra-narrowband filters (filter width of {approx}8-9 A) on the NOAO Extremely Wide-Field Infrared Mosaic camera, installed on the Mayall 4 m telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory, in order to isolate Ly{alpha} emitters at z = 7.7; such ultra-narrowband imaging searches have proved to be excellent at detecting Ly{alpha} emitters. We found 5{sigma} detections of four candidate Ly{alpha} emitters in a survey volume of 2.8 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 4} Mpc{sup 3} (total survey area {approx}760 arcmin{sup 2}). Each candidate has a line flux greater than 8 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -18} erg s{sup -1} cm{sup -2}. Using these results to construct a luminosity function and comparing to previously established Ly{alpha} luminosity functions at z = 5.7 and z = 6.5, we find no conclusive evidence for evolution of the luminosity function between z = 5.7 and z = 7.7. Statistical Monte Carlo simulations suggest that half of these candidates are real z = 7.7 targets, and spectroscopic follow-up will be required to verify the redshift of these candidates. However, our results are consistent with no strong evolution in the neutral hydrogen fraction of the IGM between z = 5.7 and z = 7.7, even if only one or two of the z = 7.7 candidates are spectroscopically confirmed.

In 1980, Carl Sagan's COSMOS received ratings of some 16 million and won three Emmys and a Peabody award. Sagan was hailed as a 'Showman of Science' by Time magazine, confirming his status as a science superstar. Haines-Stiles, 1st author for this presentation, was a Senior Producer and series director on what was for several decades PBS's highest-rated science series. Some researchers still consider primetime series on national networks as THE way to engage and inform audiences. But a revolution in both the making and consuming of science film and television has transformed the media landscape from high profile series such as COSMOS to more of a 'horizontal' ecosystem in which different formats for diverse audiences via multiple distribution networks are the norm. From the early 1990's the Internet has played an increasingly prominent role in this revolution. In 1993, Haines-Stiles and Akuginow added interactivity to traditional one-way TV broadcasts with 'Dale's Dive Diary,' in what was arguably the world's first science blog, detailing online the joys and rigors of working in Antarctica. Increasingly, the evolution of media allowed for the documentation of the process of doing science along with "eureka" discoveries and press conference results. In POLAR-PALOOZA (PPZA) this new perspective was further extended by taking Arctic and Antarctic researchers on the road to science museums in some 25 communities across the USA for spoken-word performances supported by High Definition video profiles of scientists at work at remote locations. In one instance, a researcher was given a crash course in videography and loaned a low-cost prosumer camcorder to take with her to the heart of East Antarctica. Excellent video was captured, and made part of large screen presentations in IMAX-scale theaters. In addition to the Summative Evaluation (required by project sponsors, NSF and NASA) which focused on audience responses, a recent research paper by communications scholar, Kim

Satellite collision debris poses risks to existing space assets and future space missions. Predictive models of debris generated from these hypervelocity collisions are critical for developing accurate space situational awareness tools and effective mitigation strategies. Hypervelocity collisions involve complex phenomenon that spans several time- and length-scales. We have developed a satellite collision debris modeling approach consisting of a Lagrangian hydrocode enriched with smooth particle hydrodynamics (SPH), advanced material failure models, detailed satellite mesh models, and massively parallel computers. These computational studies enable us to investigate the influence of satellite center-of-mass (CM) overlap and orientation, relative velocity, and material composition on the size, velocity, and material type distributions of collision debris. We have applied our debris modeling capability to the recent Iridium 33-Cosmos 2251 collision event. While the relative velocity was well understood in this event, the degree of satellite CM overlap and orientation was ill-defined. In our simulations, we varied the collision CM overlap and orientation of the satellites from nearly maximum overlap to partial overlap on the outermost extents of the satellites (i.e, solar panels and gravity boom). As expected, we found that with increased satellite overlap, the overall debris cloud mass and momentum (transfer) increases, the average debris size decreases, and the debris velocity increases. The largest predicted debris can also provide insight into which satellite components were further removed from the impact location. A significant fraction of the momentum transfer is imparted to the smallest debris (< 1-5mm, dependent on mesh resolution), especially in large CM overlap simulations. While the inclusion of the smallest debris is critical to enforcing mass and momentum conservation in hydrocode simulations, there seems to be relatively little interest in their

We explore the simple inter-relationships between mass, star formation rate, and environment in the SDSS, zCOSMOS, and other deep surveys. We take a purely empirical approach in identifying those features of galaxy evolution that are demanded by the data and then explore the analytic consequences of these. We show that the differential effects of mass and environment are completely separable to z {approx} 1, leading to the idea of two distinct processes of 'mass quenching' and 'environment quenching'. The effect of environment quenching, at fixed over-density, evidently does not change with epoch to z {approx} 1 in zCOSMOS, suggesting that the environment quenching occurs as large-scale structure develops in the universe, probably through the cessation of star formation in 30%-70% of satellite galaxies. In contrast, mass quenching appears to be a more dynamic process, governed by a quenching rate. We show that the observed constancy of the Schechter M* and {alpha}{sub s} for star-forming galaxies demands that the quenching of galaxies around and above M* must follow a rate that is statistically proportional to their star formation rates (or closely mimic such a dependence). We then postulate that this simple mass-quenching law in fact holds over a much broader range of stellar mass (2 dex) and cosmic time. We show that the combination of these two quenching processes, plus some additional quenching due to merging naturally produces (1) a quasi-static single Schechter mass function for star-forming galaxies with an exponential cutoff at a value M* that is set uniquely by the constant of proportionality between the star formation and mass quenching rates and (2) a double Schechter function for passive galaxies with two components. The dominant component (at high masses) is produced by mass quenching and has exactly the same M* as the star-forming galaxies but a faint end slope that differs by {Delta}{alpha}{sub s} {approx} 1. The other component is produced by

Satellite collision debris poses risks to existing space assets and future space missions. Predictive models of debris generated from these hypervelocity collisions are critical for developing accurate space situational awareness tools and effective mitigation strategies. Hypervelocity collisions involve complex phenomenon that spans several time and length-scales. We have developed a satellite collision debris modeling approach consisting of a Lagrangian hydrocode enriched with smooth particle hydrodynamics (SPH), advanced material failure models, detailed satellite mesh models, and massively parallel computers. These computational studies enable us to investigate the influence of satellite center-of-mass (CM) overlap and orientation, relative velocity, and material composition on the size, velocity, and material type distributions of collision debris. We have applied our debris modeling capability to the recent Iridium 33-Cosmos 2251 collision event. While the relative velocity was well understood in this event, the degree of satellite CM overlap and orientation was ill-defined. In our simulations, we varied the collision CM overlap and orientation of the satellites from nearly maximum overlap to partial overlap on the outermost extents of the satellites (i.e, solar panels and gravity boom). As expected, we found that with increased satellite overlap, the overall debris cloud mass and momentum (transfer) increases, the average debris size decreases, and the debris velocity increases. The largest predicted debris can also provide insight into which satellite components were further removed from the impact location. A significant fraction of the momentum transfer is imparted to the smallest debris (< 1-5mm, dependent on mesh resolution), especially in large CM overlap simulations. While the inclusion of the smallest debris is critical to enforcing mass and momentum conservation in hydrocode simulations, there seems to be relatively little interest in their

Dust-Obscured Galaxies (DOGs) are bright 24 μm-selected sources with extreme obscuration at optical wavelengths. They are typically characterized by a rising power-law continuum of hot dust (TD ˜ 200-1000 K) in the near-IR indicating that their mid-IR luminosity is dominated by an active galactic nucleus (AGN). DOGs with a fainter 24 μm flux display a stellar bump in the near-IR and their mid-IR luminosity appears to be mainly powered by dusty star formation. Alternatively, it may be that the mid-IR emission arising from AGN activity is dominant but the torus is sufficiently opaque to make the near-IR emission from the AGN negligible with respect to the emission from the host component. In an effort to characterize the astrophysical nature of the processes responsible for the IR emission in DOGs, this paper exploits Herschel data (PACS + SPIRE) on a sample of 95 DOGs within the COSMOS field. We derive a wealth of far-IR properties (e.g. total IR luminosities; mid-to-far-IR colours; dust temperatures and masses) based on spectral energy distribution fitting. Of particular interest are the 24 μm-bright DOGs (F24 μm > 1 mJy). They present bluer far-IR/mid-IR colours than the rest of the sample, unveiling the potential presence of an AGN. The AGN contribution to the total 8-1000 μm flux increases as a function of the rest-frame 8 μm-luminosity irrespective of the redshift. This confirms that faint DOGs (L8 μm < 1012 L⊙) are dominated by star formation while brighter DOGs show a larger contribution from an AGN.

Using moderate-resolution optical spectra from 58 background Lyman-break galaxies and quasars at z∼ 2.3{{{--}}}3 within a 11.‧5 × 13.‧5 area of the COSMOS field (∼ 1200 {{deg}}-2 projected area density or ∼ 2.4 {h}-1Mpc mean transverse separation), we reconstruct a 3D tomographic map of the foreground Lyα forest absorption at 2.2 < z < 2.5 with an effective smoothing scale of {ε }{{3D}}≈ 2.5 {h}-1Mpc comoving. Comparing with 61 coeval galaxies with spectroscopic redshifts in the same volume, we find that the galaxy positions are clearly biased toward regions with enhanced intergalactic medium (IGM) absorption in the tomographic map. We find an extended IGM overdensity with deep absorption troughs at z = 2.45 associated with a recently discovered galaxy protocluster at the same redshift. Based on simulations matched to our data, we estimate the enclosed dark matter mass within this IGM overdensity to be {M}{{dm}}(z=2.45)=(1.1+/- 0.6)× {10}14 {h}-1M⊙ , and argue based on this mass and absorption strength that it will form at least one z ∼ 0 galaxy cluster with M(z=0)=(3+/- 1.5)× {10}14 {h}-1M⊙ , although its elongated nature suggests that it will likely collapse into two separate clusters. We also point out a compact overdensity of six MOSDEF galaxies at z = 2.30 within a r∼ 1 {h}-1Mpc radius and Δz ∼ 0.006, which does not appear to have a large associated IGM overdensity. These results demonstrate the potential of Lyα forest tomography on larger volumes to study galaxy properties as a function of environment, as well as revealing the large-scale IGM overdensities associated with protoclusters or other features of large-scale structure.

We explore the role of environment in the evolution of galaxies over 0.1 < z < 0.7 using the final zCOSMOS-bright data set. Using the red fraction of galaxies as a proxy for the quenched population, we find that the fraction of red galaxies increases with the environmental overdensity δ and with the stellar mass M*, consistent with previous works. As at lower redshift, the red fraction appears to be separable in mass and environment, suggesting the action of two processes: mass ɛm(M*) and environmental ɛρ(δ) quenching. The parameters describing these appear to be essentially the same at z ˜ 0.7 as locally. We explore the relation between red fraction, mass and environment also for the central and satellite galaxies separately, paying close attention to the effects of impurities in the central-satellite classification and using carefully constructed samples well matched in stellar mass. There is little evidence for a dependence of the red fraction of centrals on overdensity. Satellites are consistently redder at all overdensities, and the satellite quenching efficiency, ɛsat(δ, M*), increases with overdensity at 0.1 < z < 0.4. This is less marked at higher redshift, but both are nevertheless consistent with the equivalent local measurements. At a given stellar mass, the fraction of galaxies that are satellites, fsat(δ, M*), also increases with overdensity. The obtained ɛρ(δ)/fsat(δ, M*) agrees well with ɛsat(δ, M*), demonstrating that the environmental quenching in the overall population is consistent with being entirely produced by a satellite quenching process at least up to z = 0.7. However, despite the unprecedented size of our high-redshift samples, the associated statistical uncertainties are still significant and our statements should be understood as approximations to physical reality, rather than physically exact formulae.

We present the first results from a near-IR spectroscopic survey of the COSMOS field, using the Fiber Multi-Object Spectrograph on the Subaru telescope, designed to characterize the star-forming galaxy population at 1.4 < z < 1.7. The high-resolution mode is implemented to detect Hα in emission between 1.6-1.8 μm with f {sub Hα} ∼> 4 × 10{sup –17} erg cm{sup –2} s{sup –1}. Here, we specifically focus on 271 sBzK-selected galaxies that yield a Hα detection thus providing a redshift and emission line luminosity to establish the relation between star formation rate and stellar mass. With further J-band spectroscopy for 89 of these, the level of dust extinction is assessed by measuring the Balmer decrement using co-added spectra. We find that the extinction (0.6 ∼< A {sub Hα} ∼< 2.5) rises with stellar mass and is elevated at high masses compared to low-redshift galaxies. Using this subset of the spectroscopic sample, we further find that the differential extinction between stellar and nebular emission E {sub star}(B – V)/E {sub neb}(B – V) is 0.7-0.8, dissimilar to that typically seen at low redshift. After correcting for extinction, we derive an Hα-based main sequence with a slope (0.81 ± 0.04) and normalization similar to previous studies at these redshifts.

Aims: We present new data for four candidate obscured Compton-Thick (CT) quasars at z ~ 1-2.5 observed with the SINFONI VLT spectrograph in adaptive optics (AO) mode. These sources were selected from a 24 μm Spitzer MIPS survey of the COSMOS field, on the basis of red mid-infrared to optical and optical to near-infrared colours, with the intention of identifying active galactic nuclei (AGNs) in dust enshrouded environments, where most of the black hole mass is assembled. Methods: Near-infrared spectra were analysed to check for emission line features and to search for broad components in the [OIII]-Hβ and Hα-[NII] regions. We also employed X-ray spectral analysis, radio and MIR diagnostics, and SED fitting to study the nature of the sources. Results: We successfully identified three objects for which we had only a photometric redshift estimate. Based on their emission line diagnostics and on ancillary multi-wavelength constraints, we find that all four targets harbour obscured AGNs. Broad profiles, which could be attributed to the effects of outflows, are revealed in only one target, MIRO20581. In particular, we clearly resolved a fast (~1600 km s-1) and extended (~5 kpc) outflow in the [OIII]5007 emission line. This feature, the commonly used indicator for ionised outflowing gas, was only sampled and detected for this target; hence, we cannot exclude the presence of outflows in the other sources. Overall, the constraints we obtain from our targets and from other comparative samples from the literature suggest that these optically faint luminous infrared galaxies, hosting obscured AGNs, may represent a brief evolutionary phase between the post-merger starburst and the unobscured quasar phases. Based on observations with SINFONI VLT spectrograph, ESO program 092.A-0884(A).

We present a spectroscopic survey of galaxies in the COSMOS field using the Fiber Multi-object Spectrograph (FMOS), a near-infrared instrument on the Subaru Telescope. Our survey is specifically designed to detect the Hα emission line that falls within the H-band (1.6-1.8 μm) spectroscopic window from star-forming galaxies with 1.4 < z < 1.7 and Mstellar ≳ 1010 M⊙. With the high multiplex capability of FMOS, it is now feasible to construct samples of over 1000 galaxies having spectroscopic redshifts at epochs that were previously challenging. The high-resolution mode (R ˜ 2600) effectively separates Hα and [N ii]λ6585, thus enabling studies of the gas-phase metallicity and photoionization state of the interstellar medium. The primary aim of our program is to establish how star formation depends on stellar mass and environment, both recognized as drivers of galaxy evolution at lower redshifts. In addition to the main galaxy sample, our target selection places priority on those detected in the far-infrared by Herschel/PACS to assess the level of obscured star formation and investigate, in detail, outliers from the star formation rate (SFR)—stellar mass relation. Galaxies with Hα detections are followed up with FMOS observations at shorter wavelengths using the J-long (1.11-1.35 μm) grating to detect Hβ and [O iii]λ5008 which provides an assessment of the extinction required to measure SFRs not hampered by dust, and an indication of embedded active galactic nuclei. With 460 redshifts measured from 1153 spectra, we assess the performance of the instrument with respect to achieving our goals, discuss inherent biases in the sample, and detail the emission-line properties. Our higher-level data products, including catalogs and spectra, are available to the community.

We have used FMOS on Subaru to obtain near-infrared spectroscopy of 123 far-infrared-selected galaxies in COSMOS and the key rest-frame optical emission lines. This is the largest sample of infrared galaxies with near-infrared spectroscopy at these redshifts. The far-infrared selection results in a sample of galaxies that are massive systems that span a range of metallicities in comparison with previous optically selected surveys, and thus has a higher active galactic nucleus (AGN) fraction and better samples the AGN branch. We establish the presence of AGNs and starbursts in this sample of (U)LIRGs selected as Herschel-PACS and Spitzer-MIPS detections in two redshift bins (z∼ 0.7 and z∼ 1.5) and test the redshift dependence of diagnostics used to separate AGNs from star formation dominated galaxies. In addition, we construct a low-redshift (z∼ 0.1) comparison sample of infrared-selected galaxies and find that the evolution from z∼ 1.5 to today is consistent with an evolving AGN selection line and a range of ISM conditions and metallicities from the models of Kewley et al. We find that a large fraction of (U)LIRGs are BPT-selected AGNs using their new redshift-dependent classification line. We compare the position of known X-ray-detected AGNs (67 in total) with the BPT selection and find that the new classification line accurately selects most of these objects (\\gt 70%). Furthermore, we identify 35 new (likely obscured) AGNs not selected as such by their X-ray emission. Our results have direct implications for AGN selection at higher redshift with either current (MOSFIRE, KMOS) or future (PFS, MOONS) spectroscopic efforts with near-infrared spectral coverage.

Strong gravitationally lensed quasars provide powerful means to study galaxy evolution and cosmology. Current and upcoming imaging surveys will contain thousands of new lensed quasars, augmenting the existing sample by at least two orders of magnitude. To find such lens systems, we built a robot, Chitah, that hunts for lensed quasars by modeling the configuration of the multiple quasar images. Specifically, given an image of an object that might be a lensed quasar, Chitah first disentangles the light from the supposed lens galaxy and the light from the multiple quasar images based on color information. A simple rule is designed to categorize the given object as a potential four-image (quad) or two-image (double) lensed quasar system. The configuration of the identified quasar images is subsequently modeled to classify whether the object is a lensed quasar system. We test the performance of Chitah using simulated lens systems based on the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope Legacy Survey. For bright quads with large image separations (with Einstein radius {r}{ein}\\gt 1\\buildrel{\\prime\\prime}\\over{.} 1) simulated using Gaussian point-spread functions, a high true-positive rate (TPR) of ˜ 90% and a low false-positive rate of ˜ 3% show that this is a promising approach to search for new lens systems. We obtain high TPR for lens systems with {r}{ein}≳ 0\\buildrel{\\prime\\prime}\\over{.} 5, so the performance of Chitah is set by the seeing. We further feed a known gravitational lens system, COSMOS 5921+0638, to Chitah, and demonstrate that Chitah is able to classify this real gravitational lens system successfully. Our newly built Chitah is omnivorous and can hunt in any ground-based imaging surveys.

We present measurements of the stellar mass functions (SMFs) of star-forming and quiescent galaxies to z = 4 using a sample of 95,675 K{sub s} -selected galaxies in the COSMOS/UltraVISTA field. The SMFs of the combined population are in good agreement with previous measurements and show that the stellar mass density of the universe was only 50%, 10%, and 1% of its current value at z ∼ 0.75, 2.0, and 3.5, respectively. The quiescent population drives most of the overall growth, with the stellar mass density of these galaxies increasing as ρ{sub star}∝(1 + z){sup –4.7±0.4} since z = 3.5, whereas the mass density of star-forming galaxies increases as ρ{sub star}∝(1 + z){sup –2.3±0.2}. At z > 2.5, star-forming galaxies dominate the total SMF at all stellar masses, although a non-zero population of quiescent galaxies persists to z = 4. Comparisons of the K{sub s} -selected star-forming galaxy SMFs with UV-selected SMFs at 2.5 < z < 4 show reasonable agreement and suggest that UV-selected samples are representative of the majority of the stellar mass density at z > 3.5. We estimate the average mass growth of individual galaxies by selecting galaxies at fixed cumulative number density. The average galaxy with log(M{sub star}/M{sub ☉}) = 11.5 at z = 0.3 has grown in mass by only 0.2 dex (0.3 dex) since z = 2.0 (3.5), whereas those with log(M{sub star}/M{sub ☉}) = 10.5 have grown by >1.0 dex since z = 2. At z < 2, the time derivatives of the mass growth are always larger for lower-mass galaxies, which demonstrates that the mass growth in galaxies since that redshift is mass-dependent and primarily bottom-up. Lastly, we examine potential sources of systematic uncertainties in the SMFs and find that those from photo-z templates, stellar population synthesis modeling, and the definition of quiescent galaxies dominate the total error budget in the SMFs.

Fourteen days of active head movements in microgravity appear to modify the gain and neural adaptation properties of the horizontal semicircular canals in the rhesus monkey. This is the first demonstration of adaptive plasticity in the sensory receptor. Reversing prisms, for example, do not modify the gain of the primary afferent response. Pulse yaw rotation, sinusoidal rotation, and sum of sinusoidal rotation testing during the first day following recovery revealed that the gain of a sample of afferents was significantly greater than the gain derived from afferent responses obtained during pre-flight and control monkey testing. There was no strong evidence of tilt sensitivity in the sample of afferents that we tested either during the pre-flight or control tests or during the first day post-flight. Two irregular afferents tested on postflight day 2 showed changes with tilt but the responses were not systematic. The spontaneous discharge did not change following flight. Mean firing rate and coefficient of variation remained constant during the post flight tests and was near the value measured during pre flight tests. The change in gain of horizontal canal afferents might be adaptive. The animals were required to look at a target for food. This required active head and eye movements. Active head movements have been shown to be hypometric and eye movements have been shown to be hypermetric during the first few days of past Cosmos flights (see introduction). It might be that the increased gain in the horizontal semicircular canals permit accurate target acquisition during hypometric head movements by driving the eyes to greater angles for smaller angles of head movement. The mechanism by which the semicircular canals recalibrate (increase their gain) is unknown. The efferent vestibular system is a logical candidate. Horizontal nystagmus during rotation about an earth vertical axis with the horizontal semicircular canals in the plane of rotation produced the same

We present measurements of the stellar mass functions (SMFs) of star-forming and quiescent galaxies to z = 4 using a sample of 95,675 Ks -selected galaxies in the COSMOS/UltraVISTA field. The SMFs of the combined population are in good agreement with previous measurements and show that the stellar mass density of the universe was only 50%, 10%, and 1% of its current value at z ~ 0.75, 2.0, and 3.5, respectively. The quiescent population drives most of the overall growth, with the stellar mass density of these galaxies increasing as ρstarvprop(1 + z)-4.7 ± 0.4 since z = 3.5, whereas the mass density of star-forming galaxies increases as ρstarvprop(1 + z)-2.3 ± 0.2. At z > 2.5, star-forming galaxies dominate the total SMF at all stellar masses, although a non-zero population of quiescent galaxies persists to z = 4. Comparisons of the Ks -selected star-forming galaxy SMFs with UV-selected SMFs at 2.5 < z < 4 show reasonable agreement and suggest that UV-selected samples are representative of the majority of the stellar mass density at z > 3.5. We estimate the average mass growth of individual galaxies by selecting galaxies at fixed cumulative number density. The average galaxy with log(M star/M ⊙) = 11.5 at z = 0.3 has grown in mass by only 0.2 dex (0.3 dex) since z = 2.0 (3.5), whereas those with log(M star/M ⊙) = 10.5 have grown by >1.0 dex since z = 2. At z < 2, the time derivatives of the mass growth are always larger for lower-mass galaxies, which demonstrates that the mass growth in galaxies since that redshift is mass-dependent and primarily bottom-up. Lastly, we examine potential sources of systematic uncertainties in the SMFs and find that those from photo-z templates, stellar population synthesis modeling, and the definition of quiescent galaxies dominate the total error budget in the SMFs. Based on data products from observations made with ESO Telescopes at the La Silla Paranal Observatory under ESO programme ID 179.A-2005 and on data products

Using moderate-resolution optical spectra from 58 background Lyman-break galaxies and quasars at z˜ 2.3{{{--}}}3 within a 11.‧5 × 13.‧5 area of the COSMOS field (˜ 1200 {{deg}}-2 projected area density or ˜ 2.4 {h}-1\\text{} {Mpc} mean transverse separation), we reconstruct a 3D tomographic map of the foreground Lyα forest absorption at 2.2 < z < 2.5 with an effective smoothing scale of {ɛ }{{3D}}≈ 2.5 {h}-1\\text{} {Mpc} comoving. Comparing with 61 coeval galaxies with spectroscopic redshifts in the same volume, we find that the galaxy positions are clearly biased toward regions with enhanced intergalactic medium (IGM) absorption in the tomographic map. We find an extended IGM overdensity with deep absorption troughs at z = 2.45 associated with a recently discovered galaxy protocluster at the same redshift. Based on simulations matched to our data, we estimate the enclosed dark matter mass within this IGM overdensity to be {M}{{dm}}(z=2.45)=(1.1+/- 0.6)× {10}14 {h}-1\\text{}{M}ȯ , and argue based on this mass and absorption strength that it will form at least one z ˜ 0 galaxy cluster with M(z=0)=(3+/- 1.5)× {10}14 {h}-1\\text{}{M}ȯ , although its elongated nature suggests that it will likely collapse into two separate clusters. We also point out a compact overdensity of six MOSDEF galaxies at z = 2.30 within a r˜ 1 {h}-1\\text{} {Mpc} radius and Δz ˜ 0.006, which does not appear to have a large associated IGM overdensity. These results demonstrate the potential of Lyα forest tomography on larger volumes to study galaxy properties as a function of environment, as well as revealing the large-scale IGM overdensities associated with protoclusters or other features of large-scale structure.

The aim of present experiment was to study the changes of corticosterone, insulin and glucose levels in plasma, of the activity of enzymes involved in aminoacid metabolism in liver and the binding of insulin to specific receptors of cell membrane from liver and also of adipose tissue of rats exposed to space flight for 14 days on biosatellite Cosmos 2044. Adult male Wistar rats (body mass 300-370 g) were divided into five groups: intact control rats (AC), rats exposed to space flight (F), animals in synchronous model experiment (S), rats in antiorthostatic hypokinesia (A) and so called operated control group (C). Half of all groups (5 animals) except the intact control were operated 3 days before the experiment (fibulas on both hind legs were broken). The flight animals were sacrificed 5-6 hours after landing. It was observed that plasma insulin levels are increased in rat exposed to 14-day space flight and in synchron experiments. A significant increase of plasma glucose levels was found in flight rats in spite of high insulin concentrations suggesting that in rats exposed to 14-day space a deterioration of tissue sensitivity to insulin could by present. No significant differences of specific insulin binding to liver plasma membrane fraction in flight and intact control animals were observed. A decrease of insulin binding capacity in liver was found in rats in antiorthostatic hypokinesia (A). However in the membrane of adipocytes an important increase of insulin receptors was noted in rats subjected to space flight. These results suggest, that the liver and adipocyte insulin receptors of flight rats did not respond to the increased plasma insulin levels by "down regulation". The determination of plasma corticosterone levels showed that in flight rats and in animals exposed to antiorthostatic hypokinesia the plasma hormone levels are significantly elevated. A significant increase of tyrosine aminotransferase and tryptophan pyrrolase activities in liver of flight

This paper presents progress on imaging the research field of Imaging Informatics, mapped as the clustering of its communities together with their main results by applying a process to produce a dynamical image of the interactions between their results and their common object(s) of research. The basic side draws from a fundamental research on the concept of dimensions and projective space spanning several streams of research about three-dimensional perceptivity and re-cognition and on their relation and reduction to spatial dimensionality. The application results in an N-dimensional mapping in Bio-Medical Imaging, with dimensions such as inflammatory activity, MRI acquisition sequencing, spatial resolution (voxel size), spatiotemporal dimension inferred, toxicity, depth penetration, sensitivity, temporal resolution, wave length, imaging duration, etc. Each field is represented through the projection of papers' and projects' `discriminating' quantitative results onto the specific N-dimensional hypercube of relevant measurement axes, such as listed above and before reduction. Past published differentiating results are represented as red stars, achieved unpublished results as purple spots and projects at diverse progress advancement levels as blue pie slices. The goal of the mapping is to show the dynamics of the trajectories of the field in its own experimental frame and their direction, speed and other characteristics. We conclude with an invitation to participate and show a sample mapping of the dynamics of the community and a tentative predictive model from community contribution.

Calibrate_Image calibrates images obtained from focal plane arrays so that the output image more accurately represents the observed scene. The function takes as input a degraded image along with a flat field image and a dark frame image produced by the focal plane array and outputs a corrected image. The three most prominent sources of image degradation are corrected for: dark current accumulation, gain non-uniformity across the focal plane array, and hot and/or dead pixels in the array. In the corrected output image the dark current is subtracted, the gain variation is equalized, and values for hot and dead pixels are estimated, using bicubic interpolation techniques.

We consider Einstein's attitude regarding religious as such, from both cosmological and epistemological points of view. An attempt to put it into a wider socio-historical perspective was made, with the emphasis on ethnic and religious background. It turns out that the great scientist was neither atheist nor believer in the orthodox sense and the closest labels one might stick to him in this respect would be pantheism/cosmism (ontological aspect) and agnosticism (epistemological aspect). His ideas on divine could be considered as a continuation of line traced by Philo of Alexandria, who himself followed Greek Stoics and (Neo-) Platonists and especially Baruch Spinoza. It turns out that Einstein's both scientific (rational aspects) and religious (intuitive aspects) thinking were deeply rooted in the Hellenic culture. His striving to unravel the secrets of the universe and the roots of cosmological order resembles much the ancient ideas of the role of knowledge in fathoming the divine as such, as ascribed to Gnostics.

The present work reports on the discovery of three stars that we have identified to be rotating Sun-like stars, based on rotational modulation signatures inferred from light curves from the CoRoT mission's Public Archives. In our analysis, we performed an initial selection based on the rotation period and position in the period-T eff diagram. This revealed that the stars CoRoT IDs 100746852, 102709980, and 105693572 provide potentially good matches to the Sun with a similar rotation period. To refine our analysis, we applied a novel procedure, taking into account the fluctuations of the features associated with photometric modulation at different time intervals and the fractality traces that are present in the light curves of the Sun and of these "New Sun" candidates alike. In this sense, we computed the so-called Hurst exponent for the referred stars, for a sample of 14 CoRoT stars with sub- and super-solar rotational periods, and for the Sun itself in its active and quiet phases. We found that the Hurst exponent can provide a strong discriminant of Sun-like behavior, going beyond what can be achieved with solely the rotation period itself. In particular, we find that CoRoT ID 105693572 is the star that most closely matches the solar rotation properties as far as the latter's imprints on light curve behavior are concerned. The stars CoRoT IDs 100746852 and 102709980 have significant smaller Hurst exponents than the Sun, notwithstanding their similarity in rotation periods.

Recent astrophysical studies suggest a high degree of order in the inanimate universe, stemming from cosmic beginnings. This state is consistent with the nonrandomness observed experimentally in the thermal polymers of amino acids that figure as an early inanimate stage in organic evolution. The various stages in inanimate matter, protocells, and evolved cells and the degree of order that they represent comport with the second law of thermodynamics on a cosmic scale.

Recent astrophysical studies suggest a high degree of order in the inanimate universe, stemming from cosmic beginnings. This state is consistent with the nonrandomness observed experimentally in the thermal polymers of amino acids that figure as an early inanimate stage in organic evolution. The various stages in inanimate matter, protocells, and evolved cells and the degree of order that they represent comport with the second law of thermodynamics on a cosmic scale. PMID:7231562

The present work reports on the discovery of three stars that we have identified to be rotating Sun-like stars, based on rotational modulation signatures inferred from light curves from the CoRoT mission's Public Archives. In our analysis, we performed an initial selection based on the rotation period and position in the period-T{sub eff} diagram. This revealed that the stars CoRoT IDs 100746852, 102709980, and 105693572 provide potentially good matches to the Sun with a similar rotation period. To refine our analysis, we applied a novel procedure, taking into account the fluctuations of the features associated with photometric modulation at different time intervals and the fractality traces that are present in the light curves of the Sun and of these ''New Sun'' candidates alike. In this sense, we computed the so-called Hurst exponent for the referred stars, for a sample of 14 CoRoT stars with sub- and super-solar rotational periods, and for the Sun itself in its active and quiet phases. We found that the Hurst exponent can provide a strong discriminant of Sun-like behavior, going beyond what can be achieved with solely the rotation period itself. In particular, we find that CoRoT ID 105693572 is the star that most closely matches the solar rotation properties as far as the latter's imprints on light curve behavior are concerned. The stars CoRoT IDs 100746852 and 102709980 have significant smaller Hurst exponents than the Sun, notwithstanding their similarity in rotation periods.

Lee Smolin offers a new theory of the universe that is at once elegant, comprehensive, and radically different from anything proposed before. Smolin posits that a process of self organization like that of biological evolution shapes the universe, as it develops and eventually reproduces through black holes, each of which may result in a new big bang and a new universe. Natural selection may guide the appearance of the laws of physics, favoring those universes which best reproduce. The result would be a cosmology according to which life is a natural consequence of the fundamental principles on which the universe has been built, and a science that would give us a picture of the universe in which, as the author writes, "the occurrence of novelty, indeed the perpetual birth of novelty, can be understood."Smolin is one of the leading cosmologists at work today, and he writes with an expertise and force of argument that will command attention throughout the world of physics. But it is the humanity and sharp clarity of his prose that offers access for the layperson to the mind bending space at the forefront of today's physics.

We describe a partnership to teach astronomy along with traditional Anahuacan cultural practices to local Latino families. Huey Papalotl is a Calpulli (Aztec dance group) in Berkeley California with members of all ages (babies to elders). We held weekly classes split between a first hour of astronomy lessons (presentations, hands-on activities, and outside observations of the sky) and a second hour of lessons on dances connected to the astronomical objects highlighted in the astronomy lessons (e.g. Sun, Moon, Venus, and Orion). We report on our approach to these classes, the partnership, and the efficacy interweaving science instruction with cultural learning.

Our current understanding of galaxy evolution still has many uncertainties associated with the details of the accretion, processing, and removal of gas across cosmic time. The next generation of radio telescopes will image the neutral hydrogen (H i) in galaxies over large volumes at high redshifts, which will provide key insights into these processes. We are conducting the COSMOS H i Large Extragalactic Survey (CHILES) with the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array, which is the first survey to simultaneously observe H i from z = 0 to z ∼ 0.5. Here, we report the highest redshift H i 21 cm detection in emission to date of the luminous infrared galaxy COSMOS J100054.83+023126.2 at z = 0.376 with the first 178 hr of CHILES data. The total H i mass is (2.9 ± 1.0) × 1010 M ⊙ and the spatial distribution is asymmetric and extends beyond the galaxy. While optically the galaxy looks undisturbed, the H i distribution suggests an interaction with a candidate companion. In addition, we present follow-up Large Millimeter Telescope CO observations that show it is rich in molecular hydrogen, with a range of possible masses of (1.8–9.9) × 1010 M ⊙. This is the first study of the H i and CO in emission for a single galaxy beyond z ∼ 0.2.

Our current understanding of galaxy evolution still has many uncertainties associated with the details of the accretion, processing, and removal of gas across cosmic time. The next generation of radio telescopes will image the neutral hydrogen (H i) in galaxies over large volumes at high redshifts, which will provide key insights into these processes. We are conducting the COSMOS H i Large Extragalactic Survey (CHILES) with the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array, which is the first survey to simultaneously observe H i from z = 0 to z ˜ 0.5. Here, we report the highest redshift H i 21 cm detection in emission to date of the luminous infrared galaxy COSMOS J100054.83+023126.2 at z = 0.376 with the first 178 hr of CHILES data. The total H i mass is (2.9 ± 1.0) × 1010 M ⊙ and the spatial distribution is asymmetric and extends beyond the galaxy. While optically the galaxy looks undisturbed, the H i distribution suggests an interaction with a candidate companion. In addition, we present follow-up Large Millimeter Telescope CO observations that show it is rich in molecular hydrogen, with a range of possible masses of (1.8–9.9) × 1010 M ⊙. This is the first study of the H i and CO in emission for a single galaxy beyond z ˜ 0.2.

Aims: Our goal is to develop a new and reliable statistical method to classify galaxies from large surveys. We probe the reliability of the method by comparing it with a three-dimensional classification cube, using the same set of spectral, photometric and morphological parameters. Methods: We applied two different methods of classification to a sample of galaxies extracted from the zCOSMOS redshift survey, in the redshift range 0.5 ≲ z ≲ 1.3. The first method is a combination of three independent classification schemes - a spectroscopic one based on the strength of the continuum break at 4000 Å and the rest-frame equivalent width of the [O ii] emission line, a photometric one based on the observed B - z colours, and a morphological one. The second method exploits an entirely new approach based on statistical analyses like principal component analysis (PCA) and unsupervised fuzzy partition (UFP) clustering method. The PCA+UFP method has also been applied to a lower redshift sample (z ≲ 0.5), exploiting the same set of data but replacing the spectroscopic indicators with the equivalent width of Hα. Results: The comparison between the two methods shows fairly good agreement on the definition on the two main populations, the early-type and the late-type galaxies. Our PCA+UFP method of classification is robust, flexible and capable of identifying the two main populations of galaxies as well as an intermediate population. The intermediate galaxy population shows many of the properties of "green valley" galaxies, and constitutes a more coherent and homogeneous population. The large redshift range of the studied sample allows us to characterize downsizing: galaxies with masses of the order of 3 × 1010 M⊙ are predominantly found in the transition from the late-type to the early-type group at z > 0.5, while galaxies with lower masses, of the order of 1010 M⊙, are in transition at later epochs. Galaxies with M < 1010 M⊙ have not yet begun to transition, while

We analyze the morphological properties of a large sample of 1503 70 μm selected galaxies in the COSMOS field spanning the redshift range 0.01 < z < 3.5 with a median redshift of 0.5 and an infrared luminosity range of 108 < L IR(8 - 1000 μm)< 1014 L sun with a median luminosity of 1011.4 L sun. In general, these galaxies are massive, with a stellar mass range of 1010-1012 M sun, and luminous, with -25 < M K < -20. We find a strong correlation between the fraction of major mergers and L IR, with the fraction at the highest luminosity (L IR > 1012 L sun) being up to ~50%. We also find that the fraction of spirals drops dramatically with L IR. Minor mergers likely play a role in boosting the infrared luminosity for sources with low luminosities (L IR < 1011.5 L sun). The precise fraction of mergers in any given L IR bin varies by redshift due to sources at z > 1 being difficult to classify and subject to the effects of bandpass shifting; therefore, these numbers can only be considered lower limits. At z < 1, where the morphological classifications are most robust, major mergers clearly dominate the ULIRG population (~50%-80%) and are important for the LIRG population (~25%-40%). At z > 1, the fraction of major mergers is lower, but is at least 30%-40% for ULIRGs. In a comparison of our visual classifications with several automated classification techniques we find general agreement; however, the fraction of identified mergers is underestimated due to automated classification methods being sensitive to only certain timescales of a major merger. Although the general morphological trends agree with what has been observed for local (U)LIRGs, the fraction of major mergers is slightly lower than seen locally. This is in part due to the difficulty of identifying merger signatures at high redshift. The distribution of the U - V color of the galaxies in our sample peaks in the green valley (langU - Vrang = 1.1) with a large spread at bluer and redder colors and with the

Multi-wavelength astronomy - the study of the Universe at wavelengths beyond the visible, has revolutionised our understanding and appreciation of the cosmos. Hubble, Chandra and Spitzer are examples of powerful, space-based telescopes that complement each other in their observations spanning the electromagnetic spectrum. While several Braille books on astronomical topics have been published, to this point, no printed material accessible to the sight disabled or Braille reading public has been available on the topic of multi-wavelength astronomy. Touch the Invisible Sky presents the first printed introduction to modern, multi-wavelength astronomy studies to the disabled sight community. On a more fundamental level, tactile images of a Universe that had, until recently, been invisible to all, sighted or non-sighted, is an important learning message on how science and technology broadens our senses and our understanding of the natural world.

The emergence of a proof image is often an important stage in a learner's construction of a proof. In this paper, we introduce, characterize, and exemplify the notion of proof image. We also investigate how proof images emerge. Our approach starts from the learner's efforts to construct a justification without (or before) attempting any…

Disclosed is a method and device for aligning at least two digital images. An embodiment may use frequency-domain transforms of small tiles created from each image to identify substantially similar, "distinguishing" features within each of the images, and then align the images together based on the location of the distinguishing features. To accomplish this, an embodiment may create equal sized tile sub-images for each image. A "key" for each tile may be created by performing a frequency-domain transform calculation on each tile. A information-distance difference between each possible pair of tiles on each image may be calculated to identify distinguishing features. From analysis of the information-distance differences of the pairs of tiles, a subset of tiles with high discrimination metrics in relation to other tiles may be located for each image. The subset of distinguishing tiles for each image may then be compared to locate tiles with substantially similar keys and/or information-distance metrics to other tiles of other images. Once similar tiles are located for each image, the images may be aligned in relation to the identified similar tiles.

In this article, the author offers two well-known mathematical images--that of a dot moving around a circle; and that of the tens chart--and considers their power for developing mathematical thinking. In his opinion, these images each contain the essence of a particular topic of mathematics. They are contrasting images in the sense that they deal…

This text provides a wealth of valuable, hard-to-find data on electron optics, imaging, and image intensification systems. The author explains details of image tube theory, design, construction, and components. He includes material on the design and operation of camera tubes, power components, and secondary electron emitters, as well as data on photomultiplier tubes and electron guns.

Measuring redshifted CO line emission is an unambiguous method for obtaining an accurate redshift and total cold gas content of optically faint, dusty starburst systems. Here, we report the first successful spectroscopic redshift determination of AzTEC J095942.9+022938 (`COSMOS AzTEC-1'), the brightest 1.1 mm continuum source found in the AzTEC/James Clerk Maxwell Telescope survey (Scott et al.), through a clear detection of the redshifted CO (4-3) and CO (5-4) lines using the Redshift Search Receiver on the Large Millimeter Telescope. The CO redshift of z = 4.3420 ± 0.0004 is confirmed by the detection of the redshifted 158 μm [C II] line using the Submillimeter Array. The new redshift and Herschel photometry yield LFIR = (1.1 ± 0.1) × 1013 L⊙ and SFR ≈ 1300 M⊙ yr-1. Its molecular gas mass derived using the ultraluminous infrared galaxy conversion factor is 1.4 ± 0.2 × 1011M⊙ while the total interstellar medium mass derived from the 1.1 mm dust continuum is 3.7 ± 0.7 × 1011M⊙ assuming Td = 35 K. Our dynamical mass analysis suggests that the compact gas disc (r ≈ 1.1 kpc, inferred from dust continuum and spectral energy distribution analysis) has to be nearly face-on, providing a natural explanation for the uncommonly bright, compact stellar light seen by the HST. The [C II] line luminosity L_[C II]= 7.8± 1.1 × 10^9 L_{⊙} is remarkably high, but it is only 0.04 per cent of the total IR luminosity. AzTEC COSMOS-1 and other high redshift sources with a spatially resolved size extend the tight trend seen between [C II]/FIR ratio and ΣFIR among IR-bright galaxies reported by Díaz-Santos et al. by more than an order of magnitude, supporting the explanation that the higher intensity of the IR radiation field is responsible for the `[C II] deficiency' seen among luminous starburst galaxies.

In September 2013, an ESO exhibition was shown in Santander: ``Awesome Universe -- the Cosmos through the eyes of the European Southern Observatory". Around the exhibition, were proposed several activities: guide tours for children, younger and adults, workshops, film projections... In this way, the exhibition was visited by more than two thousand persons. We must keep in mind that Santander is a small city and its population does not usually take part in outreach activity. With this contribution, we want to teach the way in which it is possible to take advantage of science exhibitions. It made possible to show stunning images that showcase celestial objects as seen by ESO's observatories to the great majority of Santander population, and to awaken their interest in or enthusiasm for science.

Since biomarker imaging is traditionally understood as imaging of molecular probes, we highly recommend to avoid any confusion with the previously defined term “imaging biomarkers” and, therefore, only use “molecular probe imaging (MPI)” in that context. Molecular probes (MPs) comprise all kinds of molecules administered to an organism which inherently carry a signalling moiety. This review highlights the basic concepts and differences of molecular probe imaging using specific biomarkers. In particular, PET radiopharmaceuticals are discussed in more detail. Specific radiochemical and radiopharmacological aspects as well as some legal issues are presented. PMID:24967536

The effects of spaceflight upon the "slow" muscle adductor longus were examined in rats flown in the Soviet Biosatellite COSMOS 2044. The techniques employed included standard methods for light microscopy, neural cell adhesion molecule (N-CAM) immunocytochemistry and electron microscopy. Light microscopic observations revealed myofiber atrophy and segmental necrosis accompanied by cellular infiltrates composed of macrophages, leukocytes and mononuclear cells. Neural cell adhesion molecule immunoreactivity (N-CAM-IR) was seen on the myofiber surface and in regenerating myofibers. Ultrastructural alterations included Z band streaming, disorganization of myofibrillar architecture, sarcoplasmic degradation, extensive segmental necrosis with apparent preservation of the basement membrane, degenerative phenomena of the capillary endothelium and cellular invasion of necrotic areas. Regenerating myofibers were identified by the presence of increased amounts of ribosomal aggregates and chains of polyribosomes associated with myofilaments. The principal electron microscopic changes of the neuromuscular junctions showed axon terminals with a decrease or absence of synaptic vesicles replaced by microtubules and neurofilaments, degeneration of axon terminals, vacant axonal spaces and changes suggestive of axonal sprouting. The present observations suggest that alterations such as myofibrillar disruption and necrosis, muscle regeneration and denervation and synaptic remodeling at the level of the neuromuscular junction may take place during spaceflight.

This book is the Proceedings of an International Symposium held in Sydney, Australia, August 30-September 2, 1983. The meeting was sponsored by the International Union of Radio Science and the International Astronomical Union.Indirect imaging is based upon the principle of determining the actual form of brightness distribution in a complex case by Fourier synthesis, using information derived from a large number of Fourier components. The main topic of the symposium was how to get the best images from data obtained from telescopes and other similar imaging instruments. Although the meeting was dominated by radio astronomers, with the consequent dominance of discussion of indirect imaging in the radio domain, there were quite a few participants from other disciplines. Thus there were some excellent discussions on optical imaging and medical imaging.

Electronic Imagery, Inc.'s ImageScale Plus software, developed through a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract with Kennedy Space Flight Center for use on space shuttle Orbiter in 1991, enables astronauts to conduct image processing, prepare electronic still camera images in orbit, display them and downlink images to ground based scientists for evaluation. Electronic Imagery, Inc.'s ImageCount, a spin-off product of ImageScale Plus, is used to count trees in Florida orange groves. Other applications include x-ray and MRI imagery, textile designs and special effects for movies. As of 1/28/98, company could not be located, therefore contact/product information is no longer valid.

There are a number of medically related imaging programs at synchrotron facilities around the world. The most advanced of these are the dual energy transvenous coronary angiography imaging programs, which have progressed to human imaging for some years. The NSLS facility will be discussed and patient images from recent sessions from the NSLS and HASYLAB will be presented. The effort at the Photon Factory and Accumulator Ring will also be briefly covered, as well as future plans for the new facilities. Emphasis will be on the new aspects of these imaging programs; this includes imaging with a peripheral venous injection of the iodine contrast agent, imaging at three photon energies, and the potential of a hospital-based compact source. Other medical programs to be discussed, are the multiple energy computed tomography (MECT) project at the NSLS and plans for a MECT program at the ESRF. Recently, experiments performed at the NSLS to image mammography phantoms using monochromatic beam have produced very promising results. This program will be discussed as well as some new results from imaging a phantom using a thin Laue crystal analyzer after the object to eliminate scatter onto the detector. {copyright} {ital 1996 American Institute of Physics.}

A Visually significant two-dimensional barcode (VSB) developed by Shaked et. al. is a method used to design an information carrying two-dimensional barcode, which has the appearance of a given graphical entity such as a company logo. The encoding and decoding of information using the VSB, uses a base image with very few graylevels (typically only two). This typically requires the image histogram to be bi-modal. For continuous-tone images such as digital photographs of individuals, the representation of tone or "shades of gray" is not only important to obtain a pleasing rendition of the face, but in most cases, the VSB renders these images unrecognizable due to its inability to represent true gray-tone variations. This paper extends the concept of a VSB to an image bar code (IBC). We enable the encoding and subsequent decoding of information embedded in the hardcopy version of continuous-tone base-images such as those acquired with a digital camera. The encoding-decoding process is modeled by robust data transmission through a noisy print-scan channel that is explicitly modeled. The IBC supports a high information capacity that differentiates it from common hardcopy watermarks. The reason for the improved image quality over the VSB is a joint encoding/halftoning strategy based on a modified version of block error diffusion. Encoder stability, image quality vs. information capacity tradeoffs and decoding issues with and without explicit knowledge of the base-image are discussed.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and Computer-aided Tomography (CT) images are often complementary. In most cases, MRI is good for viewing soft tissue but not bone, while CT images are good for bone but not always good for soft tissue discrimination. Physicians and engineers in the Department of Radiology at the University of Michigan Hospitals are developing a technique for combining the best features of MRI and CT scans to increase the accuracy of discriminating one type of body tissue from another. One of their research tools is a computer program called HICAP. The program can be used to distinguish between healthy and diseased tissue in body images.

The color accuracy of conventional RGB cameras is not sufficient for many color-critical applications. One of these applications, namely the measurement of color defects in yarns, is why Prof. Til Aach and the Institute of Image Processing and Computer Vision (RWTH Aachen University, Germany) started off with multispectral imaging. The first acquisition device was a camera using a monochrome sensor and seven bandpass color filters positioned sequentially in front of it. The camera allowed sampling the visible wavelength range more accurately and reconstructing the spectra for each acquired image position. An overview will be given over several optical and imaging aspects of the multispectral camera that have been investigated. For instance, optical aberrations caused by filters and camera lens deteriorate the quality of captured multispectral images. The different aberrations were analyzed thoroughly and compensated based on models for the optical elements and the imaging chain by utilizing image processing. With this compensation, geometrical distortions disappear and sharpness is enhanced, without reducing the color accuracy of multispectral images. Strong foundations in multispectral imaging were laid and a fruitful cooperation was initiated with Prof. Bernhard Hill. Current research topics like stereo multispectral imaging and goniometric multispectral measure- ments that are further explored with his expertise will also be presented in this work.

ImageTool is a software package developed at Bechtel Nevada, Los Alamos Operations. This team has developed a set of analysis tools, in the form of image processing software used to evaluate camera calibration data. Performance measures are used to identify capabilities and limitations of a camera system, while establishing a means for comparing systems. The camera evaluations are designed to provide system performance, camera comparison and system modeling information. This program is used to evaluate digital camera images. ImageTool provides basic image restoration and analysis features along with a special set of camera evaluation tools which are used to standardize camera system characterizations. This process is started with the acquisition of a well-defined set of calibration images. Image processing algorithms provide a consistent means of evaluating the camera calibration data. Performance measures in the areas of sensitivity, noise, and resolution are used as a basis for comparing camera systems and evaluating experimental system performance. Camera systems begin with a charge-coupled device (CCD) camera and optical relay system and may incorporate image intensifiers, electro-static image tubes, or electron bombarded charge-coupled devices (EBCCDs). Electro-optical components provide fast shuttering and/or optical gain to camera systems. Camera types evaluated include gated intensified cameras and multi-frame cameras used in applications ranging from X-ray radiography to visible and infrared imaging. It is valuable to evaluate the performance of a camera system in order to determine if a particular system meets experimental requirements. In this paper we highlight the processing features of ImageTool.

The growing influence of Western culture has greatly affected African women's status and image in the traditional society. Working women are confronted with the dilemma of preserving family traditions while changing their behavior and image to become members of the labor force. (MR)

The topics covered include the following: a system overview of the basic components of a system designed to improve the ability of a pilot to fly through low-visibility conditions such as fog; the role of visual sciences; fusion issues; sensor characterization; sources of information; image processing; and image fusion.

Cerenkov luminescence (CL) has been used recently in a plethora of medical applications like imaging and therapy with clinically relevant medical isotopes. The range of medical isotopes used is fairly large and expanding. The generation of in vivo light is useful since it circumvents depth limitations for excitation light. Cerenkov luminescence imaging (CLI) is much cheaper in terms of infrastructure than positron emission tomography (PET) and is particularly useful for imaging of superficial structures. Imaging can basically be done using a sensitive camera optimized for low-light conditions, and it has a better resolution than any other nuclear imaging modality. CLI has been shown to effectively diagnose disease with regularly used PET isotope ((18)F-FDG) in clinical setting. Cerenkov luminescence tomography, Cerenkov luminescence endoscopy, and intraoperative Cerenkov imaging have also been explored with positive conclusions expanding the current range of applications. Cerenkov has also been used to improve PET imaging resolution since the source of both is the radioisotope being used. Smart imaging agents have been designed based on modulation of the Cerenkov signal using small molecules and nanoparticles giving better insight of the tumor biology. PMID:25287690

Advances in atherosclerosis imaging technology and research have provided a range of diagnostic tools to characterize high-risk plaque in vivo; however, these important vascular imaging methods additionally promise great scientific and translational applications beyond this quest. When combined with conventional anatomic- and hemodynamic-based assessments of disease severity, cross-sectional multimodal imaging incorporating molecular probes and other novel noninvasive techniques can add detailed interrogation of plaque composition, activity, and overall disease burden. In the catheterization laboratory, intravascular imaging provides unparalleled access to the world beneath the plaque surface, allowing tissue characterization and measurement of cap thickness with micrometer spatial resolution. Atherosclerosis imaging captures key data that reveal snapshots into underlying biology, which can test our understanding of fundamental research questions and shape our approach toward patient management. Imaging can also be used to quantify response to therapeutic interventions and ultimately help predict cardiovascular risk. Although there are undeniable barriers to clinical translation, many of these hold-ups might soon be surpassed by rapidly evolving innovations to improve image acquisition, coregistration, motion correction, and reduce radiation exposure. This article provides a comprehensive review of current and experimental atherosclerosis imaging methods and their uses in research and potential for translation to the clinic. PMID:26892971

We give an overview of the role of Physics in Medicine andBiology in development of tomographic reconstruction algorithms. We focuson imaging modalities involving ionizing radiation, CT, PET and SPECT,and cover a wide spectrum of reconstruction problems, starting withclassical 2D tomogra tomography in the 1970s up to 4D and 5D problemsinvolving dynamic imaging of moving organs.

Cerenkov luminescence (CL) has been used recently in a plethora of medical applications like imaging and therapy with clinically relevant medical isotopes. The range of medical isotopes used is fairly large and expanding. The generation of in vivo light is useful since it circumvents depth limitations for excitation light. Cerenkov luminescence imaging (CLI) is much cheaper in terms of infrastructure than positron emission tomography (PET) and is particularly useful for imaging of superficial structures. Imaging can basically be done using a sensitive camera optimized for low-light conditions, and it has a better resolution than any other nuclear imaging modality. CLI has been shown to effectively diagnose disease with regularly used PET isotope (18F-FDG) in clinical setting. Cerenkov luminescence tomography, Cerenkov luminescence endoscopy, and intraoperative Cerenkov imaging have also been explored with positive conclusions expanding the current range of applications. Cerenkov has also been used to improve PET imaging resolution since the source of both is the radioisotope being used. Smart imaging agents have been designed based on modulation of the Cerenkov signal using small molecules and nanoparticles giving better insight of the tumor biology. PMID:25287690

Piramal Imaging, a division of Piramal Enterprises Ltd, is a global radiopharmaceutical company that is actively developing novel PET radiotracers for use in molecular imaging. The company focuses on developing innovative products that improve early detection and characterization of chronic and life-threatening diseases, leading to better therapeutic outcomes and improved quality of life. PMID:26295720

Imaging genetics is an experimental strategy that integrates molecular genetics and neuroimaging technology to examine biological mechanisms that mediate differences in behavior and the risks for psychiatric disorder. The basic principles in imaging genetics and the development of the field are discussed.

Advances in atherosclerosis imaging technology and research have provided a range of diagnostic tools to characterize high-risk plaque in vivo; however, these important vascular imaging methods additionally promise great scientific and translational applications beyond this quest. When combined with conventional anatomic- and hemodynamic-based assessments of disease severity, cross-sectional multimodal imaging incorporating molecular probes and other novel noninvasive techniques can add detailed interrogation of plaque composition, activity, and overall disease burden. In the catheterization laboratory, intravascular imaging provides unparalleled access to the world beneath the plaque surface, allowing tissue characterization and measurement of cap thickness with micrometer spatial resolution. Atherosclerosis imaging captures key data that reveal snapshots into underlying biology, which can test our understanding of fundamental research questions and shape our approach toward patient management. Imaging can also be used to quantify response to therapeutic interventions and ultimately help predict cardiovascular risk. Although there are undeniable barriers to clinical translation, many of these hold-ups might soon be surpassed by rapidly evolving innovations to improve image acquisition, coregistration, motion correction, and reduce radiation exposure. This article provides a comprehensive review of current and experimental atherosclerosis imaging methods and their uses in research and potential for translation to the clinic. PMID:26892971

Many important eye diseases as well as systemic diseases manifest themselves in the retina. While a number of other anatomical structures contribute to the process of vision, this review focuses on retinal imaging and image analysis. Following a brief overview of the most prevalent causes of blindness in the industrialized world that includes age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, and glaucoma, the review is devoted to retinal imaging and image analysis methods and their clinical implications. Methods for 2-D fundus imaging and techniques for 3-D optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging are reviewed. Special attention is given to quantitative techniques for analysis of fundus photographs with a focus on clinically relevant assessment of retinal vasculature, identification of retinal lesions, assessment of optic nerve head (ONH) shape, building retinal atlases, and to automated methods for population screening for retinal diseases. A separate section is devoted to 3-D analysis of OCT images, describing methods for segmentation and analysis of retinal layers, retinal vasculature, and 2-D/3-D detection of symptomatic exudate-associated derangements, as well as to OCT-based analysis of ONH morphology and shape. Throughout the paper, aspects of image acquisition, image analysis, and clinical relevance are treated together considering their mutually interlinked relationships. PMID:21743764

This draft final report describes the work performed under the delivery order number 145 from May 1995 through August 1996. The scope of work included a number of software development tasks for the performance modeling of AXAF-I. A number of new capabilities and functions have been added to the GT software, which is the command mode version of the GRAZTRACE software, originally developed by MSFC. A structural data interface has been developed for the EAL (old SPAR) finite element analysis FEA program, which is being used by MSFC Structural Analysis group for the analysis of AXAF-I. This interface utility can read the structural deformation file from the EAL and other finite element analysis programs such as NASTRAN and COSMOS/M, and convert the data to a suitable format that can be used for the deformation ray-tracing to predict the image quality for a distorted mirror. There is a provision in this utility to expand the data from finite element models assuming 180 degrees symmetry. This utility has been used to predict image characteristics for the AXAF-I HRMA, when subjected to gravity effects in the horizontal x-ray ground test configuration. The development of the metrology data processing interface software has also been completed. It can read the HDOS FITS format surface map files, manipulate and filter the metrology data, and produce a deformation file, which can be used by GT for ray tracing for the mirror surface figure errors. This utility has been used to determine the optimum alignment (axial spacing and clocking) for the four pairs of AXAF-I mirrors. Based on this optimized alignment, the geometric images and effective focal lengths for the as built mirrors were predicted to cross check the results obtained by Kodak.

We analyze morphologies of the host galaxies of 35 X-ray-selected active galactic nuclei (AGNs) at z ∼ 2 in the Cosmic Evolution Survey field using Hubble Space Telescope/WFC3 imaging taken from the Cosmic Assembly Near-infrared Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey. We build a control sample of 350 galaxies in total by selecting 10 non-active galaxies drawn from the same field with a similar stellar mass and redshift for each AGN host. By performing two-dimensional fitting with GALFIT on the surface brightness profile, we find that the distribution of the Sérsic index (n) of AGN hosts does not show a statistical difference from that of the control sample. We measure the nonparametric morphological parameters (the asymmetry index A, the Gini coefficient G, the concentration index C, and the M {sub 20} index) based on point-source-subtracted images. All the distributions of these morphological parameters of AGN hosts are consistent with those of the control sample. We finally investigate the fraction of distorted morphologies in both samples by visual classification. Only ∼15% of the AGN hosts have highly distorted morphologies, possibly due to a major merger or interaction. We find there is no significant difference in the distortion fractions between the AGN host sample and control sample. We conclude that the morphologies of X-ray-selected AGN hosts are similar to those of non-active galaxies and most AGN activity is not triggered by a major merger.

The Swedish microsatellite ASTRID was launched by a Russian Cosmos rocket on January 24, 1995 into a 1000 km circular orbit with 83 deg inclination. Besides the main objective of technological demonstration, imaging of energetic neutral atoms (ENAS) was attempted. The imager detected ENA in the energy range 0.1 - 140 keV utilizing two different techniques. Neutrals of the energy 13 - 140 keV were recorded by 14 solid state detectors with the total field of view 5 deg x 322 deg. For half a spin (approx. 1.5 s) of the ASTRID spacecraft, almost all of space was covered with an angular resolution 2.5 deg x 25 deg. Less energetic neutrals of approx. 0.1 - 70 keV were converted on a graphite target into secondary particles which then were detected by a microchannel plate with 32 anodes. A fraction of primary neutrals was directly reflected towards the sensor. This technique provided the total ENA flux with an angular resolution 4.6 deg x 11.5 deg. The instrument weight is 3.13 kg. Successful operation of the instrument during the first 5 weeks of the mission provided the first ENA images of the ring current at low altitudes.

There are basically two major parts in this thesis. The first part will involve a strong gravitational lensing study and the second part will be two industrial problems solved by electric field analysis. In part I, we examine whether a cosmologically significant distribution of dark galaxy groups can have an optical depth for multiple imaging of distant background sources which is comparable to that from known galaxies while at the same time producing angular splittings of the same order of magnitude. Modeling such systems as isothermal spheres with core radii, we find that independent of the cosmology an allowed parameter range exists that is comparable in velocity dispersion to that for known compact groups of galaxies, although the preferred core radii are somewhat smaller than that normally assumed for compact groups. After discussing dark structures which are responsible for lensing galaxies, we study statistical limits on the density parameter Ω o from a strong gravitational lensing analysis based on observed multiple lensing images in optical quasar surveys. A best fit from maximum likelihood analysis gives the value of Ω o to be 0.25 in a flat universe model, with 95% confidence level at about Ω o < 0.75. An open cosmology is not favored under the same analysis. In part II, two industrial and applied areas, capacitive sensors and radiofrequency thermal ablation, are introduced and analyzed. In the former case, we present progress of research and design in the area of liquid sensors for condition-based maintenance where accurate portable devices for monitoring hydraulic and lubricating fluids are desired. Issues addressed include dielectric modeling, capacitive calculations, and a novel 'electrogravity' mechanism. Measurements of capacitance, of frequency response, and of breakdown voltages, all as a function of contaminant concentration, have been carried out. The latter case is a study of theoretical modeling and experimental tests of that modeling for

The past decade has seen an enormous increase in the number and breadth of imaging techniques developed for analysis in many industries, including pharmaceuticals, food, and especially biomedicine. Rather than accept single-dimensional forms of information, users now demand multidimensional assessment of samples. High specificity and the need for little or no sample preparation make Raman imaging a highly attractive analytical technique and provide motivation for continuing advances in its supporting technology and utilization. This review discusses the current tools employed in Raman imaging, the recent advances, and the major applications in this ever-growing analytical field.

The high-tech art of digital signal processing (DSP) was pioneered at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in the mid-1960s for use in the Apollo Lunar Landing Program. Designed to computer enhance pictures of the Moon, this technology became the basis for the Landsat Earth resources satellites and subsequently has been incorporated into a broad range of Earthbound medical and diagnostic tools. DSP is employed in advanced body imaging techniques including Computer-Aided Tomography, also known as CT and CATScan, and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). CT images are collected by irradiating a thin slice of the body with a fan-shaped x-ray beam from a number of directions around the body's perimeter. A tomographic (slice-like) picture is reconstructed from these multiple views by a computer. MRI employs a magnetic field and radio waves, rather than x-rays, to create images. In this photograph, a patient undergoes an open MRI.

The high-tech art of digital signal processing (DSP) was pioneered at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in the mid-1960s for use in the Apollo Lunar Landing Program. Designed to computer enhance pictures of the Moon, this technology became the basis for the Landsat Earth resources satellites and subsequently has been incorporated into a broad range of Earthbound medical and diagnostic tools. DSP is employed in advanced body imaging techniques including Computer-Aided Tomography, also known as CT and CATScan, and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). CT images are collected by irradiating a thin slice of the body with a fan-shaped x-ray beam from a number of directions around the body's perimeter. A tomographic (slice-like) picture is reconstructed from these multiple views by a computer. MRI employs a magnetic field and radio waves, rather than x-rays, to create images.

Useful EPR imaging has been achieved using simple gradient coils on a standard spectrometer. Resolution of less than 1 mm is possible without deconvolution of the resulting spectra. Examples are presented using DPPH and nitroxyl radicals.

Summary To demonstrate effects of aging visually requires a robust technique that can reproducibly detect small differences in efficiency or kinetics between groups. Investigators of aging will greatly appreciate the benefits of Amnis ImageStream technology (www.amnis.com/), which combines quantitative flow cytometry with simultaneous high-resolution digital imaging. Imagestream is quantitative, reproducible, feasible with limited samples, and it facilitates in-depth examination of cellular mechanisms between cohorts of samples. PMID:26420711

The 1100C Virtual Window is based on technology developed under NASA Small Business Innovation (SBIR) contracts to Ames Research Center. For example, under one contract Dimension Technologies, Inc. developed a large autostereoscopic display for scientific visualization applications. The Virtual Window employs an innovative illumination system to deliver the depth and color of true 3D imaging. Its applications include surgery and Magnetic Resonance Imaging scans, viewing for teleoperated robots, training, and in aviation cockpit displays.

We investigate the relationships between stellar mass, gas-phase oxygen abundance (metallicity), star formation rate (SFR), and dust content of star-forming galaxies at z ∼ 1.6 using Subaru/FMOS spectroscopy in the COSMOS field. The mass-metallicity (MZ) relation at z ∼ 1.6 is steeper than the relation observed in the local universe. The steeper MZ relation at z ∼ 1.6 is mainly due to evolution in the stellar mass where the MZ relation begins to turnover and flatten. This turnover mass is 1.2 dex larger at z ∼ 1.6. The most massive galaxies at z ∼ 1.6 (∼10{sup 11} M {sub ☉}) are enriched to the level observed in massive galaxies in the local universe. The MZ relation we measure at z ∼ 1.6 supports the suggestion of an empirical upper metallicity limit that does not significantly evolve with redshift. We find an anti-correlation between metallicity and SFR for galaxies at a fixed stellar mass at z ∼ 1.6, which is similar to trends observed in the local universe. We do not find a relation between stellar mass, metallicity, and SFR that is independent of redshift; rather, our data suggest that there is redshift evolution in this relation. We examine the relation between stellar mass, metallicity, and dust extinction, and find that at a fixed stellar mass, dustier galaxies tend to be more metal rich. From examination of the stellar masses, metallicities, SFRs, and dust extinctions, we conclude that stellar mass is most closely related to dust extinction.

Physical techniques have always had a key role in medicine, and the second half of the 20th century in particular saw a revolution in medical diagnostic techniques with the development of key imaging instruments: x-ray imaging and emission tomography (nuclear imaging and PET), MRI, and ultrasound. These techniques use the full width of the electromagnetic spectrum, from gamma rays to radio waves, and sound. In most cases, the development of a medical imaging device was opportunistic; many scientists in physics laboratories were experimenting with simple x-ray images within the first year of the discovery of such rays, the development of the cyclotron and later nuclear reactors created the opportunity for nuclear medicine, and one of the co-inventors of MRI was initially attempting to develop an alternative to x-ray diffraction for the analysis of crystal structures. What all these techniques have in common is the brilliant insight of a few pioneering physical scientists and engineers who had the tenacity to develop their inventions, followed by a series of technical innovations that enabled the full diagnostic potential of these instruments to be realised. In this report, we focus on the key part played by these scientists and engineers and the new imaging instruments and diagnostic procedures that they developed. By bringing the key developments and applications together we hope to show the true legacy of physics and engineering in diagnostic medicine. PMID:22516558

StarPals is a nascent non-profit organization with the goal of providing opportunities for international collaboration between students of all ages within space science research. We believe that by encouraging an interest in the cosmos, the one thing that is truly Universal, from a young age, students will not only further their knowledge of and interest in science but will learn valuable teamwork and life skills. The goal is to foster respect, understanding and appreciation of cultural diversity among all StarPals participants, whether students, teachers, or mentors. StarPals aims to inspire students by providing opportunities in which, more than simply visualizing themselves as research scientists, they can actually become one. The technologies of robotic telescopes, videoconferencing, and online classrooms are expanding the possibilities like never before. In honor of IYA2009, StarPals would like to encourage 400 schools to participate on a global scale in astronomy/cosmology research on various concurrent projects. We will offer in-person or online workshops and training sessions to teach the teachers. We will be seeking publication in scientific journals for some student research. For our current project, the Double Stars Challenge, students use the robotic telescopes to take a series of four images of one of 30 double stars from a list furnished by the US Naval Observatory and then use MPO Canopus software to take distance and position angle measurements. StarPals provides students with hands-on training, telescope time, and software to complete the imaging and measuring. A paper will be drafted from our research data and submitted to the Journal of Double Star Observations. The kids who participate in this project may potentially be the youngest contributors to an article in a vetted scientific journal. Kids rapidly adapt and improve their computer skills operating these telescopes and discover for themselves that science is COOL!

Thoracic imaging is widely used to detect lower respiratory tract infections, identify their complications, and aid in differentiating infectious from noninfectious thoracic disease. Less commonly, the combination of imaging findings and a clinical setting can favor infection with a specific organism. This confluence can occur in cases of bronchiectatic nontuberculous mycobacterial infections in immune-competent hosts, invasive fungal disease among neutropenic patients, Pneumocystis jiroveci pneumonia in patients with AIDS, and in cytomegalovirus infections in patients with recent hematopoietic cell transplantation. These specific diagnoses often depend on computed tomography scanning rather than chest radiography alone. PMID:26024600

Advances in neuroscience are increasingly intersecting with issues of ethical, legal, and social interest. This study is an analysis of press coverage of an advanced technology for brain imaging, functional magnetic resonance imaging, that has gained significant public visibility over the past ten years. Discussion of issues of scientific validity and interpretation dominated over ethical content in both the popular and specialized press. Coverage of research on higher order cognitive phenomena specifically attributed broad personal and societal meaning to neuroimages. The authors conclude that neuroscience provides an ideal model for exploring science communication and ethics in a multicultural context. PMID:17330151

The Office of Public Outreach at STScI led two major projects in celebration of the International Year of Astronomy: a traveling exhibit touring 40 public libraries and an unveiling of images from NASA's Great Observatories at over 100 planetariums, museums, and schools. The exhibit, entitled "Visions of the Universe: Four Centuries of Discovery", explores the vast changes in not only our views of the universe since the invention of the telescope, but also in our understanding of the cosmos and our place within it. Libraries have proven to be ideal outreach partners with many and deep connections into their communities. They provide a conduit to smaller cities and underserved populations that national media cannot match. Our other project also bypasses the national media in favor of the extensive local coverage that museums and planetariums can generate. These institutions participated in a national NASA unveiling of images of the spiral galaxy Messier 101 from Hubble, Spitzer, and Chandra. They brought together local astronomers, school children, and dignitaries to create a true astronomy celebration that garnered significant newspaper and television coverage, as well as giving their communities a chance to be a part of scientific discoveries.

The Space Science and Engineering Center is a research and development center affiliated with the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Graduate School. Its primary focus is on geophysical research and technology to enhance understanding of the atmosphere of Earth, the other planets in the Solar System, and the cosmos. SSEC develops new observing tools for spacecraft, aircraft, and ground-based platforms, and models atmospheric phenomena. The Center receives, manages and distributes huge amounts of geophysical data and develops software to visualize and manipulate these data for use by researchers and operational meteorologists all over the world.[Taken from About SSEC at http://www.ssec.wisc.edu/overview/] A huge collection of data products, images, and animations comes to the SSEC from the University of Wisconsin Lidar Group. Contents of this collection include: • An archive of thousands of Lidar images acquired before 2004 • Arctic HSRL, MMCR, PAERI, MWR, Radiosonde, and CRAS forecast data Data after May 1, 2004 • MPEG animations and Lidar Multiple Scattering Models

The development of novel image processing algorithms requires a diverse and relevant set of training images to ensure the general applicability of such algorithms for their required tasks. Images must be appropriately chosen for the algorithm's intended applications. Image processing algorithms often employ the discrete wavelet transform (DWT) algorithm to provide efficient compression and near-perfect reconstruction of image data. Defense applications often require the transmission of images and video across noisy or low-bandwidth channels. Unfortunately, the DWT algorithm's performance deteriorates in the presence of noise. Evolutionary algorithms are often able to train image filters that outperform DWT filters in noisy environments. Here, we present and evaluate two image sets suitable for the training of such filters for satellite and unmanned aerial vehicle imagery applications. We demonstrate the use of the first image set as a training platform for evolutionary algorithms that optimize discrete wavelet transform (DWT)-based image transform filters for satellite image compression. We evaluate the suitability of each image as a training image during optimization. Each image is ranked according to its suitability as a training image and its difficulty as a test image. The second image set provides a test-bed for holdout validation of trained image filters. These images are used to independently verify that trained filters will provide strong performance on unseen satellite images. Collectively, these image sets are suitable for the development of image processing algorithms for satellite and reconnaissance imagery applications.

The diagnostic value of endovaginal sonography in benign or malignant endometrial pathology is high, increased by sonohysterography. Sonohysterography is useful in the diagnosis of endometrial thickness and to determine further investigations. MRI is accurate in the uterine adenomyosis diagnosis and is the imaging modality of choice for the preoperative endometrial cancer staging. PMID:11173754

In this article, the author states that she has always loved self portraits but most teenagers do not enjoy looking too closely at their own faces in an effort to replicate them. Thanks to a new digital camera, she was able to use this new technology to inspire students to take a closer look at their inner image. Prior to the self-portrait…

NASA's Technology Applications Center, with other government and academic agencies, provided technology for improved resources management to the Cibola National Forest. Landsat satellite images enabled vegetation over a large area to be classified for purposes of timber analysis, wildlife habitat, range measurement and development of general vegetation maps.

Photoacoustic (PA) imaging is a hybrid biomedical imaging method that exploits both acoustical Epub ahead of print and optical properties and can provide both functional and structural information. Therefore, PA imaging can complement other imaging methods, such as ultrasound imaging, fluorescence imaging, optical coherence tomography, and multi-photon microscopy. This article reviews techniques that integrate PA with the above imaging methods and describes their applications. PMID:25754364

Radiation-hard, steady-state imaging bolometer is disclosed. A bolometer employing infrared (IR) imaging of a segmented-matrix absorber of plasma radiation in a cooled-pinhole camera geometry is described. The bolometer design parameters are determined by modeling the temperature of the foils from which the absorbing matrix is fabricated by using a two-dimensional time-dependent solution of the heat conduction equation. The resulting design will give a steady-state bolometry capability, with approximately 100 Hz time resolution, while simultaneously providing hundreds of channels of spatial information. No wiring harnesses will be required, as the temperature-rise data will be measured via an IR camera. The resulting spatial data may be used to tomographically investigate the profile of plasmas. 2 figs.

Radiation-hard, steady-state imaging bolometer. A bolometer employing infrared (IR) imaging of a segmented-matrix absorber of plasma radiation in a cooled-pinhole camera geometry is described. The bolometer design parameters are determined by modeling the temperature of the foils from which the absorbing matrix is fabricated by using a two-dimensional time-dependent solution of the heat conduction equation. The resulting design will give a steady-state bolometry capability, with approximately 100 Hz time resolution, while simultaneously providing hundreds of channels of spatial information. No wiring harnesses will be required, as the temperature-rise data will be measured via an IR camera. The resulting spatial data may be used to tomographically investigate the profile of plasmas.

This book presents a survey of the various imaging tools with examples of the different diseases shown best with each modality. It includes 100 case presentations covering the gamut of brain diseases. These examples are grouped according to the clinical presentation of the patient: headache, acute headache, sudden unilateral weakness, unilateral weakness of gradual onset, speech disorders, seizures, pituitary and parasellar lesions, sensory disorders, posterior fossa and cranial nerve disorders, dementia, and congenital lesions.

Spin-transport effects, such as giant magnetoresistance, rely on the fact that there is a difference in scattering between the spin-up and spin-down electrons in a ferromagnetic material. The degree to which each electron channel is scattered depends on the magnetisation direction within the material, and thus on the local magnetic domain structure. It is therefore of importance when analysing spin-transport devices to understand their magnetic domain structure, both as a bulk property and locally. The aim of this chapter is to review a number of the techniques currently used to image magnetic domain structure in materials. Although a considerable amount of information about the magnetic properties and behaviour of a piece of material, for example a thin ferromagnetic film, can be obtained from bulk magnetometry measurements, it is often extremely useful to image the magnetic domain structure of the film and thus gain information about its magnetic properties at a local level. The various magnetic imaging techniques yet to be described can be extended, by the application of in-situ magnetic fields which allow not only the magnetic domains but also the magnetisation reversal process to be followed in real-time.

Image editing has important applications by changing the image texture, illumination, target location, etc. As an important application of Poisson equation, Poisson image editing processes images on the gradient domain and has been applied to seamless clone, selection editing, image denoising, etc. In this paper, we present a new application of Poisson image editing, which is based on searching source image. The main feature of the new application is all modifying information comes from the source image. Experimental results show that the proposed application performs well.

Texas Instruments Programmable Remapper is a research tool used to determine how to best utilize the part of a patient's visual field still usable by mapping onto his field of vision with manipulated imagery. It is an offshoot of a NASA program for speeding up, improving the accuracy of pattern recognition in video imagery. The Remapper enables an image to be "pushed around" so more of it falls into the functional portions in the retina of a low vision person. It works at video rates, and researchers hope to significantly reduce its size and cost, creating a wearable prosthesis for visually impaired people.

Nuclear medicine imaging is a widely used commercial imaging modality which relies on photon detection as the basis of image formation. As a diagnosis tool, it is unique in that it documents organ function and structure. It is a way to gather information that may be otherwise unavailable or require surgery. Practical limitations on imaging time and the amount of activity that can be administered safely to patients are serious impediments to substantial further improvements in nuclear medicine imaging. Hence, improvements of image quality via optimized image processing represent a significant opportunity to advance the state-of-the-art int his field. We present in this paper a new multiscale image restoration method that is concerned with eliminating one of the major sources of error in nuclear medicine imaging, namely Poisson noise, which degrades images in both quantitative and qualitative senses and hinders image analysis and interpretation. The paper then quantitatively evaluates the performances of the proposed method.

Digital image processing is now commonplace in radiology, nuclear medicine and sonography. This article outlines underlying principles and concepts of digital image processing. After completing this article, readers should be able to: List the limitations of film-based imaging. Identify major components of a digital imaging system. Describe the history and application areas of digital image processing. Discuss image representation and the fundamentals of digital image processing. Outline digital image processing techniques and processing operations used in selected imaging modalities. Explain the basic concepts and visualization tools used in 3-D and virtual reality imaging. Recognize medical imaging informatics as a new area of specialization for radiologic technologists. PMID:15352557

Pathological lesions within the scrotum are relatively rare in imaging except for ultrasonography. The diseases presented in the paper are usually found in men at the age of 15–45, i.e. men of reproductive age, and therefore they are worth attention. Scrotal ultrasound in infertile individuals should be conducted on a routine basis owing to the fact that pathological scrotal lesions are frequently detected in this population. Malignant testicular cancers are the most common neoplasms in men at the age of 20–40. Ultrasound imaging is the method of choice characterized by the sensitivity of nearly 100% in the differentiation between intratesticular and extratesticular lesions. In the case of doubtful lesions that are not classified for intra-operative verification, nuclear magnetic resonance is applied. Computed tomography, however, is performed to monitor the progression of a neoplastic disease, in pelvic trauma with scrotal injury as well as in rare cases of scrotal hernias involving the ureters or a fragment of the urinary bladder. PMID:26674847

The possibility and consequences of the extension of human society into space are addressed. The establishment of space colonies, orbital power plants and factories, and space exploration are discussed. The necessity of world cooperation to realize such projects and the development of a global space-centered society are considered.

Quantum theory is the most successful physical theory. About one third of the gross national product in the developed countries results from its applications. But very often quantum theory is still declared as "crazy" or "not understandable". However, quantum theory has a clear mathematical structure that expresses well-known experiences from every day life: A whole is often more than the sum of its parts, and not only the facts also the possibilities can act. If such structures become important then the consequences differ from the models of classical physics which rests on the fundamental differences between matter and motion, material and force, localization and extension, fullness and emptiness. From quantum theory one can learn that all these differences are useful in many cases but are not fundamental. There are equivalences between them, and these can be extended even to the equivalence between matter, energy and abstract quantum information. It is cosmological funded and is denominated as "Protyposis" to avoid the connotation of information and meaning. Protyposis enables a fundamentally new understanding of matter which can be seen as "formed", "condensed" or "designed" abstract quantum information. One result of the Protyposis is a derivation of Einstein's equations from the abstract quantum information. Another consequence is the ontological reality of the mind and its connection to a brain which can be explained without any dualistic model.

Four full days of classroom instruction, devoted to the modeling of effective curriculum integration, were designed for preservice elementary school teachers. The unit was the result of a conviction on the part of teacher educators that children learn best when learning is not separated into forty-minute periods of math, social studies, language…

This short paper considers the question: what of the future of drama in education? It suggests that perhaps, because we are artists, the future is already in play. If that is so, then we need to address those questions of value, advocacy and marginalisation more rigorously while, at the same time, addressing the impact of technology on empathic…

Uses classroom examples and literary allusions to examine the philosophy and practice of Montessori's Cosmic Education. Focuses on the use of non-theistic creation stories to create an educational environment that would foster the development of children's religious sentiment. (KB)

A brief discussion on the characteristics of pulsars is given followed by a review of millisecond pulsar discoveries including the very first, PRS B1937+21, discovered in 1982. Methods of timing millisecond pulsars and the accuracy of millisecond pulsars as clocks are discussed. Possible reasons for the pulse residuals, or differences between the observed and predicted pulse arrival times for millisecond pulsars, are given.

Johannes Kepler's Mysterium Cosmographicum, published in 1596, presented his vision of the geometrical structure of the solar system. Kepler sought to account for the number of planets, thought to be six, as well as their orbital radii. He assigned orbits to the planets in three-dimensional space. Kepler proposed that the planets move on six spheres inscribed within and circumscribed around the five platonic solids. How did he arrive at his model? By his own account reported in the book, the central idea occurred to him while giving a lecture about planetary conjunctions. But was this revelation the origin of the model? In this presentation, we discuss the artistic, scientific and mathematical environment in which Kepler was immersed in late 16th century Europe. Examples will be shown of some of the readily available inscribed polyhedra that he may have seen - printed in widely circulated books, included in well-known paintings and engravings, and displayed as three dimensional ornamentally turned sculptures. It is highly likely that he saw such physical models five years later while in the employ of Rudolf II who was an avid ornamental turner. Layered polyhedral ivory turnings were made by the nobility with what were then fairly common lathes. Kepler himself wanted to have his own celestial model made into a punch bowl! Therefore, it seems plausible that Kepler had seen models of inscribed platonic solids well before 1596. Later in life Kepler reprinted the Mysterium Cosmographicum with very little fundamental change in its outlook, even after having found what we now call Kepler's three laws of planetary motion. His interest in nested polyhedra may well have preceded any astronomical evidence or geometrical reasoning, arising from artistic and aesthetic encounters that occurred early in his life. Project LITE is supported by the NSF through DUE Grant # 0715975.

Gravitational-wave (GW) astronomy will open up a new frontier in astrophysical studies of neutron stars (NSs) and black-holes (BHs). Near-future detections will shed light on the coalescence rate of compact-object binaries, present an independent means of constraining cosmological parameters, and offer a host of other exciting opportunities. My doctoral research has followed two threads, linked by the common goal of mining rich information from near-future GW observations. In the first thread of my dissertation, I developed a technique to probe cosmological parameters with GWs in the absence of any electromagnetic counterparts. This exploits the potential for a network of GW interferometers to extract the distance of each system from the measured gravitational waveform. I use the observed intrinsic narrowness of the NS-NS mass-distribution, along with GW-measured redshifted-masses, to deduce candidate redshift distributions for each system, thereby allowing a probe of the distance-redshift relation. I find that an advanced LIGO-Virgo network can place independent, complementary constraints on the Hubble constant, whilst a third-generation network will be capable of probing the dark energy equation-of-state and the star-formation rate of the NS-NS progenitor population. In the second thread, I studied the potential for high-precision timing of millisecond pulsars to infer the perturbing influence of passing GWs. I developed a robust data-analysis pipeline to constrain the levels of anisotropy in a stochastic nanoHertz GW background using an ensemble of these pulsars. This technique cross-correlates pulse time-of-arrival deviations from many pulsars, leveraging the common influence of a stochastic background against noise sources, and mines the cross-correlation signature for information on the angular distribution of GW-power. Additionally, I developed several rapid inference techniques applicable to pulsar-timing searches for individual supermassive BH binary sources of GW radiation, which imprint a signature of their orbital evolution as the emitted GWs propagate past each pulsar. Coherently including these signatures within an accelerated pipeline can boost detection prospects in single-source searches.

Since man is no longer limited to the terrestrial sphere but reaching toward other worlds in exploration, geography as a science should no longer be restricted to its terrestrial limitations. (Author/ND)

In this article, our prime objective is to study the inflationary paradigm in the context of the generalized tachyon (GTachyon) living on the world volume of a non-BPS string theory. The tachyon action is considered here is modified compared to the original action. One can quantify the amount of the modification via a power q instead of 1 / 2 in the effective action. Using this set-up we study inflation by various types of tachyonic potentials, using which we constrain the index q within, 1/2

The results of biological experiments conducted on specialized Soviet satellite missions from 1970 through 1979 are summarized. The primary areas of investigation included the effects of weightlessness and/or artificial gravity (1G) on the growth, development, and function of different organisms and tissues and on the radiosensitivity of rats. The experimental design is explained, stressing the importance of ground controls in satellite mockups and immediate postflight evaluation. The structural and functional changes which occur in rats during weightlessness are discussed and shown to be both reversible upon return to earth gravity and avoidable by centrifuge-induced artificial gravity. The negative effects observed in the artificial-gravity experiments are attributed to the small radius of the centrifuges used. No significant effects of weightlessness on radiosensitivity, intracellular processes, or overall embryogenesis were found, but (as expected) plant-cell shape and the embryonic growth of plant roots were affected. 42 references.

Based on the notion that science begins and ends with the natural curiosity that young people have about themselves and the world, this book provides teachers and parents with many options for science exploration. Concepts are developed through science activities, creative arts activities, puzzles and games, and short biographies of individuals…

I will discuss the speckle imaging algorithms used to process images of the impact sites of the collision of comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 with Jupiter. The algorithms use a phase retrieval process based on the average bispectrum of the speckle image data. High resolution images are produced by estimating the Fourier magnitude and Fourier phase of the image separately, then combining them and inverse transforming to achieve the final result. I will show raw speckle image data and high-resolution image reconstructions from our recent experiment at Lick Observatory.

The advent of digital photography and radiography allows documentation of interesting clinical findings with unprecedented ease, and many orthopaedic surgeons have taken extensive advantage of this opportunity to create large digital libraries of clinical results. However, this leaves surgeons with a rapidly increasing volume of data to store and organize; therefore, a system for archiving, locating, and managing images, radiographs, and digital slide presentations has become a crucial need in most orthopaedic groups and practices. However, many surgical groups and practices are not familiar with the computer technology available to initiate such systems. In this review, we discuss several software solutions currently on the market to address the specific needs of orthopaedic surgeons, and as a practical example, discuss a system that is in place in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at our institution. Overall, depending on the individual circumstances of each institution, there are various options that meet different technologic and financial requirements. PMID:15123922

The MD Image System, a true-color image processing system that serves as a diagnostic aid and tool for storage and distribution of images, was developed by Medical Image Management Systems, Huntsville, AL, as a "spinoff from a spinoff." The original spinoff, Geostar 8800, developed by Crystal Image Technologies, Huntsville, incorporates advanced UNIX versions of ELAS (developed by NASA's Earth Resources Laboratory for analysis of Landsat images) for general purpose image processing. The MD Image System is an application of this technology to a medical system that aids in the diagnosis of cancer, and can accept, store and analyze images from other sources such as Magnetic Resonance Imaging.

We present results from a continuing interferometric survey of high-redshift submillimeter galaxies (SMGs) with the Submillimeter Array, including high-resolution (beam size approx2 arcsec) imaging of eight additional AzTEC 1.1 mm selected sources in the COSMOS field, for which we obtain six reliable (peak signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) >5 or peak S/N >4 with multiwavelength counterparts within the beam) and two moderate significance (peak S/N >4) detections. When combined with previous detections, this yields an unbiased sample of millimeter-selected SMGs with complete interferometric follow up. With this sample in hand, we (1) empirically confirm the radio-submillimeter association, (2) examine the submillimeter morphology-including the nature of SMGs with multiple radio counterparts and constraints on the physical scale of the far infrared-of the sample, and (3) find additional evidence for a population of extremely luminous, radio-dim SMGs that peaks at higher redshift than previous, radio-selected samples. In particular, the presence of such a population of high-redshift sources has important consequences for models of galaxy formation-which struggle to account for such objects even under liberal assumptions-and dust production models given the limited time since the big bang.

WE RECOMMEND Nucleus: A Trip into the Heart of Matter A coffee-table book for everyone to dip into and learn from The Wonderful World of Relativity A charming, stand-out introduction to relativity The Physics DemoLab, National University of Singapore A treasure trove of physics for hands-on science experiences Quarks, Leptons and the Big Bang Perfect to polish up on particle physics for older students Victor 70C USB Digital Multimeter Equipment impresses for usability and value WORTH A LOOK Cosmos Close-Up Weighty tour of the galaxy that would make a good display Shooting Stars Encourage students to try astrophotography with this ebook HANDLE WITH CARE Head Shot: The Science Behind the JKF Assassination Exploration of the science behind the crime fails to impress WEB WATCH App-lied science for education: a selection of free Android apps are reviewed and iPhone app options are listed

There is now a wide choice of medical imaging to show both focal and diffuse pathologies in various organs. Conventional radiology with plain films, fluoroscopy and contrast medium have many advantages, being readily available with low-cost apparatus and a familiarity that almost leads to contempt. The use of plain films in chest disease and in trauma does not need emphasizing, yet there are still too many occasions when the answer obtainable from a plain radiograph has not been available. The film may have been mislaid, or the examination was not requested, or the radiograph had been misinterpreted. The converse is also quite common. Examinations are performed that add nothing to patient management, such as skull films when CT will in any case be requested or views of the internal auditory meatus and heal pad thickness in acromegaly, to quote some examples. Other issues are more complicated. Should the patient who clinically has gall-bladder disease have more than a plain film that shows gall-stones? If the answer is yes, then why request a plain film if sonography will in any case be required to 'exclude' other pathologies especially of the liver or pancreas? But then should cholecystography, CT or scintigraphy be added for confirmation? Quite clearly there will be individual circumstances to indicate further imaging after sonography but in the vast majority of patients little or no extra information will be added. Statistics on accuracy and specificity will, in the case of gall-bladder pathology, vary widely if adenomyomatosis is considered by some to be a cause of symptoms or if sonographic examinations 'after fatty meals' are performed. The arguments for or against routine contrast urography rather than sonography are similar but the possibility of contrast reactions and the need to limit ionizing radiation must be borne in mind. These diagnostic strategies are also being influenced by their cost and availability; purely pragmatic considerations are not

scikit-image is an image processing library that implements algorithms and utilities for use in research, education and industry applications. It is released under the liberal Modified BSD open source license, provides a well-documented API in the Python programming language, and is developed by an active, international team of collaborators. In this paper we highlight the advantages of open source to achieve the goals of the scikit-image library, and we showcase several real-world image processing applications that use scikit-image. More information can be found on the project homepage, http://scikit-image.org. PMID:25024921

scikit-image is an image processing library that implements algorithms and utilities for use in research, education and industry applications. It is released under the liberal Modified BSD open source license, provides a well-documented API in the Python programming language, and is developed by an active, international team of collaborators. In this paper we highlight the advantages of open source to achieve the goals of the scikit-image library, and we showcase several real-world image processing applications that use scikit-image. More information can be found on the project homepage, http://scikit-image.org. PMID:25024921

Most digital imaging systems provide opportunities for image enhancement operations. These are applied to improve the original image and to make the image more appealing visually. One possible means of enhancing digital radiographic image is sharpening. The purpose of sharpening filters is to improve image quality by removing noise or edge enhancement. Sharpening filters may make the radiographic images subjectively more appealing. But during this process, important radiographic features may disappear while artifacts that simulate pathological process might be generated. Therefore, it is of utmost importance for dentists to be familiar with and aware of the use of image enhancement operations, provided by medical digital imaging programs. PMID:26255429

... Brain Surgery Imaging Clinical Trials Basics Patient Information X-Ray Imaging Print This Page X-ray imaging is perhaps the most familiar type of imaging. Images produced by X-rays are due to the different absorption rates of ...

A video image is displayed from an optical panel by splitting the image into a plurality of image components, and then projecting the image components through corresponding portions of the panel to collectively form the image. Depth of the display is correspondingly reduced.

A video image is displayed from an optical panel by splitting the image into a plurality of image components, and then projecting the image components through corresponding portions of the panel to collectively form the image. Depth of the display is correspondingly reduced.

A reciprocal imaging technology with an encoding/decoding image readout method allows a single detector (such as a heterodyne detector) to produce a two dimensional (2D) image simultaneously. Applying it in a pulsed terahertz imaging system could create a 2D terahertz image with 100pixels per frame which produces the same signal to noise ratio as a signal spot measurement.

Contrast and lightness measures are used to first classify the image as being one of non-turbid and turbid. If turbid, the original image is enhanced to generate a first enhanced image. If non-turbid, the original image is classified in terms of a merged contrast/lightness score based on the contrast and lightness measures. The non-turbid image is enhanced to generate a second enhanced image when a poor contrast/lightness score is associated therewith. When the second enhanced image has a poor contrast/lightness score associated therewith, this image is enhanced to generate a third enhanced image. A sharpness measure is computed for one image that is selected from (i) the non-turbid image, (ii) the first enhanced image, (iii) the second enhanced image when a good contrast/lightness score is associated therewith, and (iv) the third enhanced image. If the selected image is not-sharp, it is sharpened to generate a sharpened image. The final image is selected from the selected image and the sharpened image.

The article helps to understand the interpretation of an image by presenting as to what constitutes an image. A common feature in all images is the basic physical structure that can be described with a common set of terms.